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Politico, NY Post, TVWeek

Ben Carson Raises Eyebrows With Racial Comments About Obama

Feb 23, 2016  •  Post A Comment

With his standing in the GOP presidential race fading, Ben Carson vaulted himself back into the headlines with a series of race-oriented comments about President Obama.

In a sitdown with Politico, Carson told the publication: “He’s an ‘African’ American. He was, you know, raised white. I mean, like most Americans, I was proud that we broke the color barrier when he was elected, but … he didn’t grow up like I grew up. … Many of his formative years were spent in Indonesia. So, for him to, you know, claim that, you know, he identifies with the experience of black Americans, I think, is a bit of a stretch.”

The New York Post notes that Carson later returned to the topic on MSNBC, where he said he wasn’t criticizing Obama.

“He did not grow up in black America, he grew up in white America,” Carson is quoted saying on MSNBC. “Doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with that. It’s just that when the claim is made that he represents the black experience, it’s just not true.”

The Post notes: “Carson, the only black candidate running for president, has campaigned on his background of rising from the streets of Detroit as the son of a single mother to graduating from Yale and becoming director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital before his retirement in July 2013.”

Carson finished sixth in a field of six GOP candidates in Saturday’s South Carolina primary.

3 Comments

  1. Yes, Ben, it’s true. And the Supreme Court agrees with you that we’re now in a “post-racial” society.
    In fact, Obama has faced no hostility or derision because of his race. Ever. And unicorns graze on the White House lawn.

    Even if Obama does not “identify” with the experience of black Americans (which he does), there sure are an awful lot of angry Americans out there who identify him as “black.” Only they spell it with an N.

  2. WriterGuy – you normally have some sense of reality in what you share, so what happened? Obama has been derided for his policies not his color! Time and again Obama tried to make any opposition to his policies and illegal acts about race – but it clearly was not. He has divided the country more than any recent politician or community organizer. Ben Carson came to political prominence when he called out Obama (who was sitting only a few feet away at the time) about his policies, not his color. He as been consistent in his criticism of Obama and it has never been about color. These recent comments are directly tied to Obama’s claims to be product of the black community and Carson’s perspective that he in fact did not have what most people would consider a “black community experience”.

  3. I know this page is badly aged, but for the love of everything good RC, do you actually believe you’ve refuted WG? I suggest a careful reading of the article, and WG’s post.
    This one is a doozy: “Obama tried to make any opposition to his policies and illegal acts about race”
    That’s a damn lie,

    Regards, John Debba.

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