Cain says he declined Trump’s Fed nomination over political correctness
Former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain told FOX Business’ Maria Bartiromo that he withdrew his name from consideration for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board because the position placed limits on his business interest and on his ability to voice his opinions.
“I could not run my business, I could not pursue my business interest and I had to be politically correct in anything or be non-partisan,” he said on Wednesday.
President Trump nominated Cain in April, leading to a debate over who should sit on the two open seats on the U.S. central bank's board of governors. Four Republican senators have expressed their disapproval of Cain’s Fed post nomination.
Cain said, as the New Voice CEO, he has the flexibility to tell the American people the truth about the dangers of socialism while advocating for capitalism.
“If I am a Federal Reserve governor, all of that goes away and I have very, very, very limited flexibility,” he said on “Mornings with Maria.”
Critics of Cain’s Fed board nomination suggested he lacked experience despite serving on the Kansas City Federal Reserve between 1989 and 1996. He also held the CEO post at Godfather’s Pizza.
“They didn’t want someone on the board that has a broader view of business and a broader view of the impact of the policies and the things that the Fed would do because I would’ve brought that perspective to the Federal Reserve Board of Governors,” he said.
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The search to fill the Fed Board vacancy comes at a time when the president has criticized the central bank for having raised interest rates and impeding U.S. economic growth.
Cain hopes the Fed remains patient by refraining from raising interest rates for the rest of the year and hopes it looks at different variables when measuring the state of the economy.
“If they stay with that patience that is good news” he said. “Good news for the market, good news for businesses, good news for profit reports.”