It sure didn’t take long for Democrats to strike back at Thursday’s National Prayer Breakfast remarks made by Dr. Benjamin Carson that took a conservative tack and criticized the national debt and current fiscal tax-and-spend policy.
On a CNN on Sunday, Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky accused Dr. Carson of hypocrisy, saying he actually used political correctness — which he had denounced in his speech — for his personal gain.
“Well, I think that there’s a political correctness that he was trying to use to appeal to a conservative audience,” she said, on CNN, as reported in Israel Matsav. She also criticized Dr. Carson for making what she described as a “political speech” during a religious event, calling his timing inappropriate — as well as his “invoke[ing] of God as support for that kind of view.”
Ms. Schakowsky said Dr. Carson’s comments are simply indicative of “where many of the Republicans and tea partiers are right now,” and said that “we need to have an economy that works for everyone.”
Dr. Carson, in his remarks, characterized the U.S. tax system as “so complex there is no one that can possibly comply with every jot and tittle,” he said, as reported by various media. He further suggested the fairest tax policy would from “the fairest individual in the universe — God — and he’s given us a system. It’s called the tithe.”
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His comments sent conservatives clapping — with some even suggesting a run for the White House.
On a Friday appearance on Hannity, Dr. Carson was asked about a possible run for the nation’s highest political office. Dr. Carson responded, according to Mediaite: “If the Lord grabbed me by the collar and made me do it, I would.”
The question was not out of left field. Dr. Carson also told Hannity: “If I got a nickel from everyone who sent me an email asking me to run, I would be able to finance my campaign.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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