Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson withdrawn controversial comments involving Muslim to be US President.
Tuesday, the 64 year-old American author, retired Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon and Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson appeared on public, withdrawn comments involving Muslims to be US President. His controversial comment went viral, calling Muslim as inconsistent with the values and principles of America. Carson announced to run for the Republican nomination in the 2016 presidential election, 4 May 2015 at his own hometown Detroit.
Monday night in his Facebook post, he wrote: “I could never support a candidate for president of the United States that was Muslim and had not renounced the central (tenet) of Islam: Sharia Law,” “I know that there are many peaceful Muslims who do not adhere to these beliefs. But until these tenets are fully renounced … I cannot advocate any Muslim candidate for President.” He also said that a Muslim could serve as president if they disavow Sharia law in order to get his support.
After his controversial comment, Ben Carson stressed that he is more interested in the president prioritizing U.S. Constitution over his or her faith. In a news conference in Sharonville, Ohio, he said: “I don’t care what a person’s religion beliefs are or religious heritage is. If they embrace our Constitution and are willing to place that above their religious beliefs, I have no problem with that.”
During an interview with Chuck Todd, Ben Carson stated, “I guess it depends on what that faith. If it’s inconsistent with the values and principles of America, then of course it should matter. But if it fits within the realm of America and consistent with the Constitution, no problem,” when asked about his views on whether a person’s faith should be considered by voters during an election.
His comment caught the attention of many, specially Muslim nationals as he pointed he would not advocate and would not agree for Muslim to be in charge in their nation but noted that he would consider voting for a Muslim for Congress, depending on the candidate’s policy views. Ben Carson said, “If you’re a Christian and you’re running for president and you want to make this into a theocracy, I’m not going to support you. I’m not going to advocate you being the president.”
Carson also added, “Now, if someone has a Muslim background and they’re willing to reject those tenets and to accept the way of life that we have, and clearly will swear to place our constitution above their religion, then, of course, they will be considered infidels and heretics, but at least I would then be quite willing to support them.”
The head of the nation’s largest Muslim advocacy group been alarmed about what Ben Carson said. Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic relations stated, “Not long ago, some people thought that a Catholic cannot be a president, an African-American cannot be a president. They were wrong then, and they are wrong now.” He pointed out that article six of the US constitution states “no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States”.
Upon hearing Carson’s controversial statement, Justin Barrett, a religion scholar at the Fuller Theological Seminary said, “It is likely that most Christian traditionalists in America have more in common concerning foundational values with Muslims than they do with progressives. Differences are real between people of various faiths and ethnicities, but they often mask deeply important similarities, and variation within a group may be greater than differences between the groups.” IMAGE/ Richard Ellis/Corbis
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