Herman Cain withdraws bid to join the Fed, President Trump says

Tea Party activist and former Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain has asked to no longer be considered for nomination to the Federal Reserve Board, according to President Donald Trump.

The announcement is a swift reversal from last week, when Cain insisted he would stay the course through the White House vetting process in hopes of becoming an eventual member of the Board of Governors.

What are the details?

President Trump tweeted Monday, "My friend Herman Cain, a truly wonderful man, has asked me not to nominate him for a seat on the Federal Reserve Board. I will respect his wishes. Herman is a great American who truly loves our Country!"

Last week, Cain told the Wall Street Journal he was "very committed" to remaining in the running despite rumors to the contrary, and reiterated to the Fox Business Network that backing out was "not in [his] nature," The Hill reported.

Anything else?

Analysts have speculated for weeks that Cain would bow out after four Republican senators publicly announced they would not support his nomination, and an alleged former mistress threatened to "identify certain parts of Mr. Cain's body" to the Senate Banking Committee if he didn't withdraw his name from the running. Cain was also still dogged by old allegations of sexual harassment by multiple women, which were — at least in part — responsible for the downfall of his 2011 presidential bid.

Critics, including Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), claimed Cain was too political for the Fed role and not experienced enough in economics. According to the Washington Post, Cain "has supported controversial ideas such as a return to the gold standard system the United States abandoned nearly a half-century ago," noting, "the system would have made it almost impossible for the central bank to undertake many of the rescue measures it did during and after the 2008-2009 financial crisis."

But supporters touted the former Godfather's Pizza CEO's tenure of serving on the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City's board of directors, and several Republicans have called for a diversity in perspectives on the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors.