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WASHINGTON – Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain defended his 999 tax plan against growing criticism Friday at the Values Voter Summit, telling naysayers to address him directly rather than make calculations of their own.

Cain said his 999 plan – 9 percent corporate tax, 9 percent personal income tax and 9 percent national sales tax – is a "bold" solution to the nation's weak economy and those who didn't agree had likely tampered with the plan's formula.

He stressed the plan is revenue neutral and would generate more income as businesses grow. It will also save the nation $430 billion dollars, he asserted. more >>

WASHINGTON – Newly energized Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich asked values voters for their support and offered Constitution-abiding justices in return.

A rejuvenated Gingrich took the stage Friday night, touting his comeback in the polls. He said the pundits and "elite media" were right that it is now a two-man race for the next GOP nominee. However, those two men, Gingrich joked, may be him and Herman Cain.

A CBS News poll this week put Gingrich in third place – a vast improvement from his previous last place showing among seven candidates. more >>

WASHINGTON – House Majority Leader Eric Cantor urged Americans on Friday to stand for persecuted Christians such as Iranian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, the country of Israel and religious liberty.

Cantor (R-Va.) used the Values Voter Summit stage to spotlight the plight of the jailed Iranian pastor.

"As we sit here today, Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani is literally fighting for his life in Iran simply for his Christianity," he said. more >>

Dr. Robert Jeffress, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, has caused a firestorm over comments he made Friday about former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney not being a Christian because he is a Mormon. During his discussion with CP, Jeffress also said that President Barack Obama must be "unseated" at all costs.

"I think that it is a spiritual imperative that we unseat Barack Obama," he told CP. "He is the most pro-abortion, most pro-homosexuality [president] in history. So if I look at the landscape of Republican candidates, I believe that eventually it will come down to a choice between Mitt Romney and Rick Perry, and I think a confident Christian like Rick Perry has a consistent record of conservative values."

Perry is a preferable candidate to Romney, Jeffress added in his commentary of the two Republicans. more >>

WASHINGTON – On day one of Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit, conservatives and Republican leaders cited the Department of Labor reports showing that unemployment has remained unchanged.

Republican House Speaker John Boehner opened the conference on Friday with the news that despite an uptick in hiring, the U.S. jobless rate remains at 9.1 percent.

The White House noted that private sector employers added 137,000 jobs in September. Additionally, overall payroll employment rose by 103,000. Labor Department reports also show that unemployment insurance claims decreased by 4,000 claims prior to Sept. 24. more >>

The U.S. Supreme Court justices considered on Wednesday whether churches and religious institutions have the right to claim ministerial exception in employment issues, in the case of Hosanna-Tabor Evangelical Lutheran Church and School v. U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The ministerial exception allows religious entities to give preference in employment to individuals of a particular religion or require that employees confirm the organization's religious tenants.

University of Virginia Law professor Douglas Laycock, the attorney representing the Redford, Mich., school, argued before the U.S. Supreme Court that if ministerial exception is struck down in their case, then judges would be left to determine whether ministers were performing their religious duties effectively in future cases. more >>