WASHINGTON (AP) – GOP presidential hopeful Ben Carson says it’s time to move on from questions about the accuracy of his life story. But Tuesday’s GOP debate makes that unlikely.
The retired neurosurgeon said Sunday that questions about discrepancies in his autobiography are distractions from “much more important” matters facing the country and that he’d discuss any “real” scandal uncovered about his past. He strongly disputed any dishonesty or wrongdoing.
“Every single day, every other day or every week, you know, they’re going to come out with, ‘Well, you said this when you were 13,’ ” Carson said on CBS’ “Face the Nation” Sunday.
“The whole point is to distract the populace, to distract me,” he added. “If you’ve got a real scandal, if you’ve got something that’s really important, let’s talk about that.”
Moving on, at least in the short term, is unlikely. The accuracy of Carson’s autobiography has dominated his campaign in the past few days, and more questions are likely during the GOP presidential debate on Tuesday. The scrutiny reflects Carson’s transformation from political outsider to the top of the polls in the unsettled nomination fight, second only to billionaire developer Donald Trump. And in early-voting Iowa, some polls show Carson leading.