Bob CollinsWhat happened after presidential candidate Ben Carson said on NBC last week that a Muslim should not be president carried an important lesson on the state of politics and the nation: There’s good money in anti-Muslim comments.
“I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that.” Carson said on NBC’s Meet the Press. “If it’s inconsistent with the values and principles of America, then of course it should matter.”
While there’s been pushback from people not likely to vote for him, it’s been a goldmine in the currency of American politics: money.
“The money has been coming in so fast, it’s hard to even keep up with it,” he said this morning on Fox News. “I remember the day of the last debate, within 24 hours we raised $1 million. And it’s coming in at least at that rate if not quite a bit faster.”
There’s no way to tell for sure whether Carson is telling the truth. Campaign reports aren’t due to the Federal Elections Commission until the end of the month.
Carson’s assertion, however, matches the narrative told by the person who runs a PAC supporting him, the Washington Times says.
“We sent out an email to Carson supporters, and we’ve never had an email raise so much money so quickly — it’s unbelievable,” said John Philip Sousa IV, who chairs the 2016 Committee super PAC.
“My phone has exploded over the last 48 hours — of people wanting me to pass on to Dr. Carson how much they respect his truthfulness and believe in the American system, and how absolutely not should anyone who believes in Sharia law come close to the White House,” he said, adding, “The people are on Dr. Carson’s side on this one — sorry NBC you lose.”
