No one really doubts that 64-year-old Ben Carson graduated University of Michigan Medical School in 1973, completed his residency in neuro-surgery at Johns Hopkins Medical School in 1977 and became a successful neurosurgeon. Since announcing for presidency May 4, the press has scrutinized his non-medical background, including his life-story “Gifted Hands” published in 1992. Claiming he was once a violent youth trying to hit mother with a hammer and plunging a knife into a friend, only to be “born again” while contemplating his acts in a bathroom, Carson’s co-written autobiography has come under fire. GOP’s outspoken frontrunner 69-year-old real estate mogul Donald Trump questioned Carson’s “pathological temper” and “born again” experience, asking Iowa voters to take a second look before they’re duped by the mild- mannered GOP candidate.
Trump’s bluster sometimes looses the important message that Carson lacks the basic qualifications for commander-in-chief, especially his lack of knowledge about domestic and foreign policy. Apart from questionable stories from his autobiography, Carson continues to make outrageous gaffes on the campaign trail, most recently insisting that China competes with Russia in Syria and the Middle East. Speechless trying to respond to Carson’s China assertion, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest looked dumbfounded. Carson insisted he has better intel from his sources than the White House or Pentagon. When he’s forced to walk back gaffes, Carson frequently blames the “gotcha” liberal media, playing right into the conspiracy-driven conservatives, often ripping the mainstream media for liberal bias. Carson cleverly blames his gaffes on distortions by the liberal press.
Speaking at a campaign stop at Iowa Community College, Trump couldn’t contain his ire at Carson’s nonsense. “How stupid are the people of Iowa?” asked Trump. “How stupid are the people of this country to believe this crap,” speaking plainly but risking alienating voters. Carson’s spiritual journey as mapped out in his autobiography appeals to evangelicals, making up a sizable part of Iowa caucus voters. Trump talked about Carson’s “pathological temper,” questioning whether he’s fit for president. None of the TV networks, especially CNN, looking into Carson’s past could verify Carson’s violent temper. “I had what I only can label as pathological temper—a disease—and this sickness controlled me, making me totally irrational,” Carson confessed in his 1992 book, referring to the incidents of trying to attack his mother and knife a friend.
Calling homosexuality a “lifestyle choice,” Egypt’s Great Pyramids of Giza grain storage lockers, arming Jews would have prevented the Holocaust and, most recently, China’s involvement in Syria, Carson insists the media takes him out of context explaining his too-frequent gaffes. Whether it’s about the tax code or about dealing with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, Carson offers only vague answers, promising more details to follow. “Carson is an enigma to me,” Trump told a Fort Dodge, Iowa rally. Carson described his religious epiphany in “Gifted Hands.” “God heard my deep cries of anguish. A feeling of lightness flowed over me, and I knew a change of heart had taken place. I felt different. I was different,” Carson explained how his uncontrolled rage was eventually healed. “And the people of Iowa believe him. Give me a break, it doesn’t happen that way,” said Trump. “Don’t be fools.”
Asked about Trump’s comments, Carson responded demurely in Greeville, S.C.. “It’s not the kind of dialogue that I would ever engage in,” referring to Trump questioning his arcane descriptions in “Gifted Hands.” Carson described a chance meeting with Vietnam-era Gen. William Westmoreland who offered him a free ride to West Point. When questioned about the specifics, Carson said don’t expect him to recall things that happened 50 years ago. When responding to discrepancies, Carson puts the onus back on accuser or liberal media. “The wonderful thing is, it’s not really up to me. It’s up to the people,” referring to voters that buy his story and believe that anyone that questions it must be mean-spirited. Questioning anything in his autobiography or statements on the campaign trail, Carson cites today’s politics of “personal destruction,” refusing to “have to get into that.”
Yahoo News’ senior columnist Matt Bai, not known for hyperbole, referred to Carson as an “imposter,” not questioning his medical background but his superficial knowledge of basic domestic and foreign policy. Mounting evidence of inconsistencies in his autobiography—not to mention real-time campaign gaffes—raises real questions about Carson’s integrity, despite his pastoral campaign style. “They will listen and they will be able to make a decision about whether they want to listen to the usual politics of personal destruction or whether they want to deal with something better,” Carson told his audience in North Carolina. Cleverly framing Trump’s attacks as left-wing bias, Carson knows how to manipulate conservative voters, especially evangelicals, into discounting inconsistencies in his story or gaffes on the campaign trails. Voters are left dumfounded by his subdued demeanor.
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