Dr. Ben Carson (INTERVIEW)
Dr.
Ben Carson
The
“A More Perfect Union” Interview
with
Kam Williams
The Presidential Candidate Talks about the Campaign for the
Republican Nomination
Dr.
Ben Carson was born on September 18, 1951 in a poverty-stricken
section of Detroit where he and his brother Curtis were raised by a
single-mom who worked two or three jobs at a time to keep a roof over
their heads. Nevertheless, he managed to beat the odds and make it
out of the 'hood to pursue his dream of becoming a physician.
Dr.
Carson recently retired after a groundbreaking 35-year career as the
director of neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins hospital. Among his many
accolades is the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's highest
honor civilian honor.
He
is also the author of 9 books, including his latest, “A More
Perfect Union,” which he co-wrote with his wife, Candy. Here, he
talks about that as well as his campaign for the Republican Party's
presidential nomination.
Kam
Williams: Hi
Dr. Carson, I'm honored to have another opportunity to speak with
you, especially at the height of the political campaign. .
Ben
Carson: My
pleasure, Kam.
KW:
I told
my readers I'd be interviewing you, and I received way more questions
than we'd ever be able to get to. I'll be mixing theirs in with some
of my own.
BC:
That's fine.
KW:
Editor/Legist Patricia Turnier says: I loved your last book "You
Have a Brain." What is the main message you wish to convey with
this new book?
BC:
Most Americans know we have a Constitution, but relatively few
people know what's in it, or the history behind it. That wasn't
always the case. There was a time when we taught Civics and people
actually studied the Constitution. Still, the Constitution is the
document which actually defines our liberties and defines the role of
government. And it also constrains the government, because of its
tendency to grow, concentrate and dominate the people. Furthermore,
our Founders said that our system and our freedoms are based upon a
well-educated populace. They warned that, if we ever became other
than that, the nature of the country would quickly change. So, I'm
trying to prevent the nature of the country from changing.
KW:
Patricia
was also wondering whether the Hippocratic Oath you took as a
physician to "do no harm" creates an ethical conflict for
you as a President who might have to declare war?
BC:
No, it
doesn't any more so than the oath creates a conflict for a surgeon
who has to cut out a tumor to save a patient's life. Sometimes, you
have to remove whatever is bad in order to promote general health and
preserve what's good.
KW:
Patricia's
last question is: If you become president, what would you do to
support aging Baby Boomers, since so many have lost their jobs and
homes and/or their health and have even ended up homeless or on
welfare?
BC:
The way
we help everybody is by fixing the economy. The economy is a terrible
drag on everything, including Social Security benefits. Everything is
affected by it. If we can eliminate the unnecessary regulations, and
I stress the word "unnecessary," and fix the tax code so
that we create an environment that is conducive to the
entrepreneurial enterprise and capital investment, that will enable
the boats of everybody to rise, including Baby Boomers.
KW:
The
next question is about the issue of anchor babies. Do you think the
14th Amendment should be changed to eliminate birthright citizenship?
BC:
I don't
think it has to be changed, because the fifth clause stipulates that
the legislative branch has the power to interpret that amendment.
They simply need to interpret it as not being meant to allow anyone
who's here illegally to be able to have a baby and then claim
citizenship for it.
KW:
Would
you support a Constitutional amendment to protect the rights of the
unborn?
BC:
Absolutely!
KW:
Felicia
Haney asks: Which of the five tenets of Islam would you ask a Muslim
presidential candidate to give up in order to garner your vote? Are
you aware that Sharia law has changed with the times just as much as
the Constitution has changed which once considered blacks 3/5ths of a
person?
BC:
If they
accept Sharia law, then I want them to show me where that change in
Sharia law eliminates the disparities in the ways they treat women
and gays, and how it has changed their tolerance of other religions.
I'm always willing to listen, but show me where those attitudes have
changed.
KW:
Maddy
Troilo asks: Do you perceive your calm demeanor to be an asset to
your campaign, or is it something that your aides have tried to get
you to alter?
BC:
There
have been some people who think I should change who I am, but I'm not
going to do that. I am who I am, and it seems to be resonating with a
lot of people. It's not really a matter of how loud you shout, it's a
matter of what you accomplish, and what has your life been like,
which means a lot more than what you say it was like.
KW:
Maddy
has a follow-up: How much experience in foreign affairs does a
president need to effectively manage our international relations? And
do you feel that you have, or will be able to attain, that amount of
experience?
BC:
I think what's most important is that you have wisdom, and that
you surround yourself with experts. I don't think anyone who's
running for President right now is an expert on Soviet affairs, or on
Korea or the Middle East. Yet, we have access to experts, so what's
important is to make wise decisions.
KW:
Maddy
also says: You
frequently refer to the "ways that recent Presidents, Congresses
and Courts have threatened [our] democracy." What do you view as
the greatest current threat to our democracy?
BC:
I'd say
the biggest threat to us right now is giving up our freedom of speech
and our freedom of expression, and allowing completely insane things
to occur in our society.
KW:
Environmental
activist Grace Sinden asks: What would be your #1 priority after
being sworn in as President?
BC:
First,
I'd call for a joint session of Congress to make sure they understand
that we serve the people, that the people don't serve us, and that
everything we do is going to be oriented towards re-establishing the
people at the pinnacle of the government.
KW:
Nick
Klevans asks: Why should people of color vote for you or any
Republican? Marilyn Marshall has a similar question. She points out
that Mitt Romney only
garnered 17% of the entire minority vote in 2012. What is the
Republican Party doing to attract more non-white voters, particularly
African-Americans?
BC:
I think
it is incumbent upon the Republican
Party to go out into non-traditional neighborhoods, as I've been
doing, to talk about how people can become empowered as opposed to
remaining in a dependent position. 50 or 60 years of the progressive
ideology has not resulted in the improvement of the position of the
black community. In fact, it has deteriorated. I want to demonstrate
how we can use education and how we can use resources more
effectively by turning dollars over 2 or 3 times in the community as
a way of creating wealth. I also want to show how having a baby
out-of-wedlock usually terminates the mother's education and sends
the child into a spiral of poverty. These are the kinds of issues
which must be talked about and must be dealt with, and I've been on
the forefront of that.
KW:
Nick
also asks: What do you attribute your rise in the polls to?
BC:
I
attribute it to common sense, my talking about issues that are
relevant to the American people, and to my being a non-politician.
People are tired of all the political speak.
KW:
Reggie
Kearney asks: Why do you often use slavery to make analogies to
current issues, like when you suggested that Obamacare was the worst
thing that happened to African-Americans since slavery?
BC:
Because
I think most people miss the implications of Obamacare, and I wanted
to dramatically bring what's going on to their attention. What you
have is a situation where the country is supposed to always be of, by
and for the people with the government functioning as facilitator of
our interests. But with Obamacare, the government reversed it, and
said, "This is what we're doing. We don't care what you think.
If you don't like it, too bad." That now puts the government in
the driver's seat, and the people in a dependent position which the
Founders never intended. That fundamentally changes the character of
America. And, if we accept that, it will only be the beginning of
some pretty dramatic changes.
KW:
Robin
Beckham asks: What plans do you have to reverse the high
African-American incarceration rate, if elected president?
BC:
For one
thing, we need to reconsider why we incarcerate non-violent criminals
in the same facilities as violent ones. That really provides them a
"university" where they can learn how to be professional
criminals who are dangerous to society. Non-violent offenders still
need to pay for the crimes they committed and to be rehabilitated,
but we need to be thinking about prisons in a very, very different
way.
KW:
Kevin
Curran asks: What
is your plan for the inner cities? How would you help people who are
stuck in the cycle of poverty to move up the ladder?
BC:
Well,
for one, we need to get the economy moving again. One of the ways is
to recognize that we have the highest corporate tax rate in the
developed world. We need to bring back the over $2.1 trillion dollars
overseas which won't come back as long as we have that high corporate
tax rate. What I would do is declare a 6-month hiatus on those taxes,
so that that money could be repatriated. And I would only require
that 10% of it be invested in enterprise zones to create jobs for
unemployed people on Welfare. That would, by far, be the biggest job
stimulus for the poor.
KW:
Wesley
Derbyshire asks: What are you looking for in a running mate?
BC:
I would
be looking for someone who has the same philosophy as I do. I don't
think like a politician. Most politicians would think, "Which
running mate could bring me this or that constituency?" I don't
think that way at all, and I probably never will.
KW:
Wesley
says: Dr. Carson, you have implied we the people need to stand up and
protest and register our displeasure. However with the ongoing
privatization of what used to be public areas, and a law enforcement
that literally bans protests, how do you envision citizens being able
to rise up and make their voices heard when we are typically being
stopped?
BC:
Very
simply, by informing yourself of who your representatives are, of how
they are voting, determining whether they're really representing your
point of view, and communicating with them. That's how you make
yourself heard.
KW:
Larry
Greenberg has a medical question. He says: The neurosurgeons I know
devote a good part of their practice to removing tumors. Is there
anything we should be doing as a nation to prevent brain cancer?
BC:
We
don't know what causes brain cancer, so I guess the best that we can
do is continue to do the research that will help us discover them.
KW:
Steve
Kramer asks: When was the last time you personally felt the effects
of racism?
BC:
The
last time I looked at a newspaper and read what the progressives are
saying about me.
KW:
Steve
is also wondering whether your religious faith might affect your
ability to honor the separation of church and state?
BC:
I don't
see any reason why it would. When our Constitution was created, it
was put together by men who, for the most part, had a Judeo-Christian
foundation, and they put it together in a way which was consistent
with their Judeo-Christian values.
KW:
Mirah
Riben asks: Do you really believe that personal gun ownership would
have prevented Kristallnacht from happening in Nazi Germany?
BC:
I never
said that it would. I said that it would have been a lot more
difficult to happen, if people had been armed. That's the very reason
why they disarmed them first.
KW:
Mirah
also says: I agree with your statement that many people conceived in
rape or incest have gone on to lead good lives, but does that warrant
forcing a woman to carry a child conceived in such a way against her
will? That could scar her for life. It's like giving the victim of a
crime a nine-month prison sentence.
BC:
No,
it's honoring the sanctity of life. What we have to battle against is
adopting a culture of death and destruction when, in fact, life is
what we should be celebrating in the culture. That doesn't mean that
the woman has to keep that baby. But I know some tremendous people
who were conceived from rape.
KW:
Jennifer
Williams says: Dr. Carson, given the GOP's stand on employment
discrimination and access to bathrooms, why do you think Transgender
Republicans like myself and other members of the LGBT community
should still consider voting Republican?
BC:
Just
because you belong to that community, doesn't mean you can't exercise
common sense. Common sense would dictate that there are a lot of
people who would not be comfortable with a transgendered person in
their bathroom. Therefore, let's come up with an alternative that
works for everybody, rather than just a solution that works for the
transgendered individual.
KW:
British
citizen Miv Evans says: Millions of hard-working Americans have to
endure a lot of inequities. Do you agree that they just don't know
what a bad deal they're getting?
BC:
Knowledge
is power. There's no question about that. Our Founders indicated that
the more educated the populace, the freer, which is why we
concentrate on getting information to the people.
KW:
Marcia
Evans asks what you think about the case of Henrietta Lacks and
how her family has not received any compensation despite the enormous
value of her cancer cells to the medical and pharmaceutical
industries?
BC:
I think
it would have been appropriate to compensate her family, since her
cells obviously had a tremendously positive effect on cancer
research, and it just seems like the fair thing to do.
KW:
Dr.
William Derbyshire says: On.March
12, 2014, you said the United States is "very much like Nazi
Germany." Would you mind clarifying what you meant by that?
BC:
What I
said is that the most of the people of Nazi Germany did not share
Hitler's beliefs, and yet they didn't say anything. They kept their
mouths shut. And that was one of the things that facilitated the rise
of the Third Reich. The point I was making is that we must not fall
into the same trap by permitting political correctness to intimidate
us into being afraid to express our actual beliefs. Another thing I
alluded to was the Nazi misuse of government agencies, which happened
here with the IRS. So, we have to be careful. I didn't say that we
are like them yet. I was issuing a warning that if we don't take
heed, we could very easily move in that direction.
KW:
Ilene
Proctor says: I
do so admire your surgical skills .Is there any truth to the rumor
that you performed the first do-it-yourself lobotomy?
BC:
[Chuckles]
KW:
I
guess Ilene doesn't share your political perspective. But she does
have a serious question. Do you regret directing
the robber at Popeye's restaurant to the cashier, when he tried to
stick you up?
BC:
No, the
Left has tried to turn that into a big deal. But the fact of the
matter is that, if you're a customer and a robber mistakes you for
the clerk of the store, it would be stupid not to point out the
person who could open the cash register. That's a completely
different situation than the Oregon shooting where the gunman was
there to kill everyone. In that scenario, of course you'd defend
them.
Anybody
who can't understand the difference between the two situations is a
moron.
KW:
Finally,
what’s in your wallet?
BC:
A
desire to save this country for future generations. I want to afford
the children longevity and quality of life. i see a lot of things
happening right now that are jeopardizing that, and I want to do
everything I can to preserve the country.
KW:
Thanks
again for the time, Dr. Carson, and best of luck with the book and
the campaign.
BC:
Thank
you, Kam. Take care.
To
purchase a copy of "A
More Perfect Union,"
visit:
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