(Note: This post has been updated; see below).
The scoring document for Herman Cain’s 9-9-9 plan — along with references to a value added tax (VAT) — are missing from the campaign’s website. And links to the plan from critical articles written in recent weeks no longer work.
For example, writing in the New York Times on October 11, Bruce Bartlett critiqued Cain’s plan, writing, “… attention is being drawn to his platform, especially what he calls the 9-9-9 tax plan.”
But clicking on that link today, sends the reader to an error page which says: “Like an Obama policy, this 404 page gets you nowhere.” It used to go here: http://www.hermancain.com/images/economicgrowth.pdf
Also broken is this: http://www.hermancain.com/docs/999_Scoring_Tables.pdf
So why would Cain’s team pull down the page now? As recently as November 9 — two days ago — the links were live and generating unwanted attention on Twitter (primarily from Perry supporters). Here’s an example:
Allegations that the 9-9-9 plan included (or would at least lead to) a VAT, of course, have long plagued Cain. In response to Bartlett’s critique, for example, National Review’s Josh Barro noted that Cain’s plan
is far more similar to a value-added tax than to a corporate income tax. And indeed, the description on Cain’s website matches Bartlett’s, saying the business tax would apply to “Gross income less all investments, all purchases from other businesses and all dividends paid to shareholders.”
(Emphasis mine.)
But clicking on the hyperlink that Barro embedded in word “description” today will send you straight to a 404 page.
So what was so controversial that it apparently had to be pulled down? The “scoring report” included this:
A business transactions tax would radically broaden the base for businesses. Each business would pay tax on gross receipts less payments to other businesses. Allowing the subtraction of payments for intermediate goods yields the value added by the company. Subtracting investment as well yields a subtraction method value-added tax.
In keeping with the basic value-added structure, the tax is treated as border adjustable.
(Emphasis mine.)
If you google “Herman Cain 999 score” the top three results also send you to broken links on their site.
(Note: I have contacted Cain spokesman J.D. Gordon and will update this post if and when they respond with a quote.)
Update: Still haven’t heard back from the Cain campaign. Some commenters do note that Cain is unveiling a revamped website today.
Update ii: It looks like the links are back up and working …