GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson joined Breitbart News Sunday on SiriusXM Patriot Channel 125 with host Stephen K. Bannon, Breitbart News’ Executive Chairman, who asked Carson about his numbers and support increasing after the first GOP presidential primary debate last week in Cleveland, Ohio.
A recent NBC poll after the debate noted that Carson is right behind GOP frontrunner Donald Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). Also following the debate, the Carson campaign posted on Facebook, “Even more, it’s clear that the people were listening – we gained over 100,000 friends and patriots on Facebook during the debate.”
Bannon asked Carson if he thought the fact that he didn’t get much talking time from Fox News in the beginning of the debate had anything to do with being underestimated by some critics as a top tier candidate.
“The traditional world of political punditry and political experts think that the possibility of someone like me being successful is zero. That’s been their attitude from the very beginning,” Carson answered.
He continued, “They’ve forgotten about the most important thing and that is the people. For decades now, we’ve kind of forgotten about the people. It was Thomas Jefferson who said that in the end just before we turn to another form of government, the people will rise up and will speak and we will regain control of government – they need to read those passages.”
Carson went on to explain why he believes his message is resonating with voters.
“I think one of the things is integrity. People have lost faith in their government, you know, whatever the government says, you pretty much say, well you know, it must be the opposite of that… that’s not what this country was designed to be,” he said. “The government works for the people and not the other way around.”
In order to get the government back to where it should be – working for the people – Carson said, “We have to reestablish the priorities and we must get back to the Constitution.”
“They’re also very concerned about our fiscal ineptitude and I don’t know if very many people other than myself are really talking about the danger that we’re in in terms of the fiscal gap – the amount of money we actually owe and the implications for the future,” he added.
On the topic of the type of questions Fox News asked the candidates, Carson in a previous interview with Breitbart News appeared disappointed the candidates didn’t receive more pressing questions on issues like national security and foreign policy.
“I would have rather seen something a little more serious and directed really more toward the gigantic issues that are going to destroy this nation if we don’t do something about it,” he told Bannon. “I would have liked to have seen a situation where everybody had an opportunity to respond because the electorate must have an opportunity to compare apples to apples.”
Bannon asked Carson about his plan for immigration, which was a topic Carson said he wished he had been asked about during the debate.
“It is a big problem and it’s perfectly solvable by sealing all of the borders… not just the southern border because we have to worry about the jihadists who want to destroy us and are infiltrating our society… it’s not just fences and walls, it’s electronic surveillance and drones,” Carson explained about protecting the borders, adding more personnel could help keep the border safe.
Carson went on to explain what he plans to do once the borders are secured.
“You also have to turn off the spigot that dispenses the goodies. If there were no goodies to come here for, what would be the point of risking going through all of that barrier just to get here for noting – and you have to make the hiring of people who are not here legally a criminal offense,” he explained. “Then, you still have the 11 million people who are here – many of whom don’t know any other place, so where are you going to send them back to?”
He said it is “not practical” to round up and deport all 11 million people.
“What we have to do is provide them an opportunity to become guest workers, provided that they pay their back tax penalty, pay taxes going forward…they’re not eligible for any benefits that citizens of America get – and if they want to become an American citizen, they have to get in the back of the line and they have to go through the same process as anybody else. That’s the way I think you take care of it,” he said, adding this plan wouldn’t collapse the farming and hotel industries among others.
Bannon asked Carson if he thought the influx of illegal immigrants are taking away from American jobs, especially in places like Baltimore where the African American unemployment rate is high.
Carson said it does make it worse, but “if you make people register and become guest workers, you have much more control over that.”
On the topic of being soft spoken and usually a voice of reason among a crowded field of GOP candidates, Carson said, “It was Teddy Roosevelt that said walk softly and carry a big stick… people that believe that just because you’re not jumping all over the place and yelling and screaming, that you don’t have resolve and backbone. You know, they need to read my autobiography and see what kind of resolve and backbone I do have.”
“People, who have to raise the decibel level of what they say, frequently don’t have anything to say,” Carson stated. “When people start actually listening to what I’m saying, I think if they have common sense they will be able to resonate quite effectively with it.”
