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Carson had said he was not a member of any political party.[38] However, he joined the Republican Party on November 4, 2014, the day the 2014 midterms took place, as “truly a pragmatic move” because he may run for president in 2016.[39] In his book America the Beautiful, he explained his decision to enter politics: “I believe it is a very good idea for physicians, scientists, engineers, and others trained to make decisions based on facts and empirical data to get involved in the political arena”.[40][41]
In a 1996 interview, Carson said that he found the “concept of for profits for the insurance companies” absurd. He continued, “The first thing we need to do is get rid of for-profit insurance companies. We have a lack of policies and we need to make the government responsible for catastrophic health care”.[42] In 2014 Carson wrote, “. . . we need to remove health care from the political arena and recognize that any government proposals affecting the health of all citizens should be free market-based and should be so appealing that it would not be necessary to force citizens into the program.”[43]
In 1992, Carson wrote that aging and technological advancement will eventually lead to many people surviving their 100th birthdays. He questioned the merits of prolonging life, citing the fact that “up to half of the medical expenses incurred in the average American’s life are incurred during the last six months of life”. He discussed the “dignity of dying in comfort, at home, with an attendant if necessary” and stated, “Decisions on who should be treated and who should not be treated would clearly require some national guidelines”.[42][better source needed]
[48]
At White House in 2008 for award
In an interview with Neil Cavuto, Carson defended himself, “Somebody has to be courageous enough to stand up to the bullies”.[49] On February 8, he appeared on Hannity, and said that he would run for president “If the Lord grabbed me by the collar and made me do it”.[50]
After the speech, Carson said: “I don’t think it was particularly political…You know, I’m a physician”.[51] Regarding the policies of President Obama, he said: “There are a number of policies that I don’t believe lead to the growth of our nation and don’t lead to the elevation of our nation. I don’t want to sit here and say all of his policies are bad. What I would like to see more often in this nation is an open and intelligent conversation”.[citation needed]
In the National Review, Jonah Goldberg compared Carson to Booker T. Washington,[52] while David Graham compared him toHerman Cain without the “personal skeletons” in The Atlantic.[53]
Carson’s sudden popularity among conservatives led to him being invited as a featured speaker at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). He tied for seventh place in the Washington Times/CPAC 2013 Straw Poll with 4% of the 3,000 ballots cast.[54][55] In the 2014 CPAC straw poll, he came in third place with 9% of the vote, behind senators Ted Cruz of Texas (with 11%) and Rand Paul of Kentucky (31%).[56]
Carson had a strong showing in the polls at the 2013 and 2014 Values Voter Summits: in 2013, he tied with former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum for second place with 13%, behind Ted Cruz’s 42%. In 2014, he took 20% of the Values Voter Summit vote to Cruz’s 25% and came in first place for the vice presidential poll.[57][58]
Marriage and homosexuality
In March 2013, Carson described his views about same-sex marriage on Hannity, saying: “Marriage is between a man and a woman. No group, be they gays, be theyNAMBLA, be they people who believe in bestiality, it doesn’t matter what they are. They don’t get to change the definition.”[59] Carson’s comments drew criticism for using “gays” in the same sentence as pedophiles and practitioners of bestiality. A group of Hopkins students petitioned that he be replaced as the university’scommencement speaker.[59][60]
Several days later, Carson withdrew as Hopkins’s commencement speaker and apologized, saying that “the examples were not the best choice of words”, adding that the Bible “says we have an obligation to love our fellow man as ourselves, and I love everybody the same—all homosexuals”.[60][61] He said on CNN that he loved all people, whether gay or straight.[59] Carson added, “I was trying to say that as far as marriage was concerned, it has traditionally been between a man and a woman and no one should be able to change that.”[62]
In October 2014, Carson was added to the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC)’s extremist watch list because of his association with groups considered by SPLC to be extremist in nature, his claims of a link between gay people and pedophiles, and his comparison of health care and liberal government to slavery andtotalitarianism.[63][64] In February 2015, the SPLC removed his name and apologized to Dr. Carson.[65][66][67][68][69][70] stating: “In October 2014, we posted an “Extremist File” of Dr. Ben Carson. This week, as we’ve come under intense criticism for doing so, we’ve reviewed our profile and have concluded that it did not meet our standards, so we have taken it down and apologize to Dr. Carson for having posted it. We’ve also come to the conclusion that the question of whether a better-researched profile of Dr. Carson should or should not be included in our “Extremist Files” is taking attention from the fact that Dr. Carson has, in fact, made a number of statements that express views that we believe most people would conclude are extreme.”[71]
In a March 2015 interview with Chris Cuomo, Carson stated that homosexuality was “absolutely” a choice, claiming that “a lot of people go into prison straight, and when they come out, they’re gay”.[72] In a Facebook post, Carson apologized, saying that he “[does] not pretend to know how every individual came to their sexual orientation.”[73][74] In a Facebook post, Carson said that he supports civil unions for gay couples and that he has “for many years”.[75]
Evolution
Carson’s views on evolution and creationism have also been controversial.[76] In a 2006 debate with Richard Dawkins, Francis Collins, and Daniel Dennett, Carson stated: “I don’t believe in evolution…I simply don’t have enough faith to believe that something as complex as our ability to rationalize, think, and plan, and have a moral sense of what’s right and wrong, just appeared.”[77] In 2012, nearly 500 professors, students, and alumni of Emory University wrote a letter expressing concern about his views in advance of his commencement speech (there was no request to rescind the invitation). They cited a quote in an interview with the Adventist Review: “By believing we are the product of random acts, we eliminate morality and the basis of ethical behavior”. Carson clarified that “People who believe in survival of the fittestmight have more difficulty deriving where their ethics come from. A lot of evolutionists are very ethical people.[76]
Affordable Care Act
On October 11, 2013, Carson spoke at the conservative Values Voters Summit in Washington, D.C., where he called the Affordable Care Act (ACA) “the worst thing that has happened in this nation since slavery“. He claimed that the ACA originated with Vladimir Lenin, and quoted Lenin as saying that “socialized medicine is the keystone to the establishment of a socialist state“.[78] There is no evidence that Lenin actually said this, but the purported quote appears on a number of conservative websites.[79][80] After an onslaught of criticism, Carson denied that he was “equating Obamacare with slavery” in an October 15 Washington Times column and denounced the “PC police” for attempting “to discredit and…silence” him.[81]
During the National Prayer Breakfast, Carson said about the ACA: Here’s my solution. When a person is born, give him a birth certificate, an electronic medical record and a health savings account [HSA].”[82]
Cannabis legalization
Carson is against the legalization of recreational cannabis. He believes it to be a gateway drug that leads to “hedonistic activity”.[83][84][85]
Gun control
See also: Gun politics in the United States
Carson stated in 2013 in an interview with Glen Beck that semi-automatic firearms should be better regulated in large cities and high-crime areas.[86] This statement has caused some with conservative views on gun control to question if his views were at odds with most conservatives. Later, clarifying that “This isn’t any evolution of my views, just that I’ve learned how to express myself,” he stated that he is strongly in favor of the Second Amendment[87] and that if in a position of national authority, he would allow citizens to own any weapons, including automatic and semi-automatic guns, that they could buy.[88]
2016 Presidential campaign
Main article: Ben Carson presidential campaign, 2016
In January 2015, The Weekly Standard reported that the Draft Carson Committee had raised $13 million by the end of 2014, shortly after Carson performed well in aCNN/ORC poll of potential candidates in December 2014, coming in second in two different versions. He came in second with 10% behind Mitt Romney’s 20%, but in the same poll with Romney removed from the list, Carson closed the gap with 11% to Jeb Bush’s 14%.[89][34]The Wall Street Journal mentioned that the Draft Carson Committee had chairmen in all of Iowa‘s 99 counties, and that Carson had recently come in first place in two separate Public Policy polls for the state ofPennsylvania.[90][91]
On May 3, 2015, Carson confirmed his candidacy for President in an interview with a local television station in Cincinnati, Ohio. He officially announced he was running for the Republican nomination in the 2016 Presidential election at a rally in Detroit, his hometown, on May 4, 2015.[92]
Carson Scholars Fund
In 1994, Carson and his wife started the Carson Scholars Fund, which gave scholarships to students in grades 4–11 for “academic excellence and humanitarian qualities”.[93] They founded it after reading that U.S. students ranked second to last in terms of math and science testing among 22 countries. They also noticed that schools awarded athletes with trophies whereas honor students only received “a pin or certificate”.
Recipients of the Carson Scholars Fund get a $1,000 scholarship towards their college education. It has awarded 6,700 scholarships.[94][93] In recognition for his work with the Carson Scholars Fund and other charitable giving throughout his lifetime, Carson was awarded the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership in 2005.[95]
Who is Dr. Ben Carson?
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