A revised version of this article appears here. 
 
 LAS VEGAS – Gov. Rick Perry of Texas said Wednesday that he would propose a flat tax next week as part of a tax overhaul program, signaling a new effort to separate himself from Mitt Romney and the rest of the Republican field. 
 
 Mr. Perry signaled his intent in a speech to Republicans on Wednesday morning after Tuesday night’s brawl of a Republican debate. He has in the past suggested support for some form of a flat tax, but has backed off from endorsing one. Mr. Perry recently recruited as an adviser Steve Forbes, who ran for president in 1996 on a pledge of implementing a single flat tax on income, without any deductions. 
 
 Mr. Perry did not offer details of how his plan would work. He said he wanted to scrap “the three million words of the current tax code and start with something simple: a flat tax.” 
 
 “I want to make the tax code so simple that even Timothy Geithner can file his taxes on time,” the governor said. 
 
 Mr. Perry said his tax plan would also advocate a “serious” round of spending cuts and endorse a balanced budget amendment. 
 
 His remarks come after one of his opponents for the nomination, Herman Cain, has gained traction with his 9-9-9 plan, which seeks to tax personal and corporate income at 9 percent, while imposing a 9 percent national sales tax. 
 
 In his remarks, Mr. Perry picked up where he left off Tuesday night in trying to differentiate himself from Mr. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, telling an audience of Republicans that he was not a candidate “of the establishment.” 
 
 “The American people are not going to trim around the edges when it comes to 2012: They are going to turn Washington inside out,” he said. “Let me share with you one thing. I am not the candidate of the establishment. You won’t hear a lot of shape-shifting nuance from me. I am going to give the American people a huge big old helping of unbridled truth — that we can’t continue to spend what we are spending, that we can’t avoid entitlement reform because we are afraid of the third rail of politics.” 
 
 Mr. Perry did not mention Mr. Romney’s name in 15 minutes of remarks to the Republican Leadership Conference, but his target was clear. It came the morning after the two men tangled repeatedly during what was the most contentious Republican debate of the year. 
 
 Mr. Perry’s appearance also comes as his standing in many polls has fallen after a rough start to his campaign. He suggested that the establishment was writing him off too soon. 
 
 “Pundits and the establishment, they may think they choose, or it’s their responsibility, or their right, to choose our next president,” he said. “Primary voters and caucus voters haven’t got that memo yet.” ||||| Steve Forbes backs Perry for president 
 
 By Josh Lederman - 
 
 Businessman and two-time presidential candidate Steve Forbes is backing Rick Perry's presidential bid. 
 
 Forbes's support for Perry stems primarily from the Texas governor's support for a flat-tax system, which Forbes drilled as his primary campaign theme in 1996 and 2000. 
 
 "With firm leadership which Rick Perry will provide — which is why I'm endorsing him for president — I think this will be a winning issue," Forbes said on Fox News. 
 
 On Wednesday, Perry told Republican activists in Las Vegas that he would introduce a flat-tax proposal, but did not reveal any details. Those details are expected Tuesday, when Perry unveils his plan in South Carolina. 
 
 Forbes has been advising Perry, but it remains to be seen how closely Perry's plan will mirror what Forbes proposed when he ran for president. Forbes favored a 17 percent flat rate with an exemption for annual incomes under $36,000. 
 
 “Steve Forbes is a well known fiscal conservative, and provided strong support and advice throughout the process of drafting my economic and jobs plans,” Perry said in a statement. “I am honored to have Steve’s endorsement of my candidacy for president.” 
 
 Perry's call for a flat tax comes on the heels of rival Herman Cain's rise in the polls, where he has usurped the front-runner status Perry nabbed after entering the race in August. Cain has made his 9-9-9 plan for flat income, sales and corporate tax rates his singular buzzword for the 2012 campaign. 
 
 Yet Cain's plan has come under attack on both sides, with Democrats arguing it unfairly burdens the lower class and Republicans arguing the 9 percent national sales tax adds a new and unnecessary revenue stream for the federal government. 
 
 Cain has responded by tweaking the plan to allow an exemption for those living in poverty and for economically distressed areas. But every time Cain unveils an additional caveat, the plan's simplicity — its most appealing element — is blunted. 
 
 Forbes signaled that Perry's plan would not include the new sales tax that conservatives have hounded, which he said would make the plan "even more appealing."
– He may hate 9-9-9, but Rick Perry is all in favor of a national flat tax. The Texas governor announced today that he will propose one as part of his economic plan next week, reports the Weekly Standard. “I want to make the tax code so simple that even Timothy Geithner can file his taxes on time,” said Perry. He offered no details on how the tax would work in his address to the Western Republican Conference, but he said the overall plan also would call for a balanced budget amendment, entitlement reform, the abolishment of earmarks, and more energy exploration. Perry recently enlisted Steve Forbes as an adviser, notes the New York Times, the same Steve Forbes who pushed for a flat tax on income in his 1996 run for the presidency. Perry didn't mention Mitt Romney in his brief speech, but he clearly had him in mind after their testy debate last night. "I am not the candidate of the establishment," he said. "You won’t hear a lot of shape-shifting nuance from me."