STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) – Republican presidential hopeful Ben Carson rode his outsider image, calm demeanor and compelling life story to the top of a chaotic GOP field earlier this fall.
Since then, however, the retired neurosurgeon has fumbled on foreign policy, lashed out publicly at scrutiny of his life story and has had to referee a tug-of-war among his closest advisers – all while watching his rivals capitalize on his troubles.
But six weeks before voting begins, Carson’s campaign insists that he is still poised to win in first-to-vote Iowa, where Carson plans to concentrate his campaign through to the Feb. 1 caucus.
The blitz comes amid lingering questions about his overall readiness for the job. His aides acknowledge that national front-runner Donald Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, who some polls show as the new leader in Iowa, have commandeered the spotlight in a Republican race, the focus of which has shifted to national security following mass attacks at home and abroad.
The candidate himself remains unwavering.