All week, we've been telling you about Herman Cain's 999 plan. The Republican frontrunner's tax overhaul is simple: 9% tax on personal income, a 9% tax on corporate income, and a 9% sales tax. Many speculated the former Godfather's Pizza CEO turned to a great delivery deal — $9.99 — for inspiration on the name. It's catchy, easy to remember.
As Lawrence pointed out last night, the plan isn't so simple. His exact phrasing was, "most vicious assault on the middle class and the working poor, and the most lavish giveaway to the rich, that has ever been proposed by a presidential campaign frontrunner." When you look closer at the fine-print, the plan essentially abolishes Social Security and Medicare.
Details on how Cain came up with the plan are hazy. With the exception of Rich Lowrie, an employee at the local Wells Fargo bank in Cleveland, his team of economic advisers remains on the the DL. (To him, his "advisers are the American people.")
The Huffington Post may have stumbled upon the foundation of 999 in the virtual game land of SimCity:
Long before Cain was running for president and getting attention for his 999 plan, the residents of SimCity 4 — which was released in 2003 — were living under a system where the default tax rate was 9 percent for commercial taxes, 9 percent for industrial taxes and 9 percent for residential taxes. (That is, of course, if you didn't use the cheat codes to get unlimited money and avoid taxes altogether.)
When asked about the similarities between them, Cain campaign spokesman JD Gordon told HuffPo "we all like 999."