Former President Donald Trump’s recent speech at the annual Black Conservative Federation gala in South Carolina took an unexpected turn when he boasted about Ben Carson’s scandal-free tenure as HUD secretary, but Trump clearly overlooked misconduct allegations that surfaced against Carson during the early months of his administration.
Back in 2018, Carson was accused of purchasing a $31,561 dining table set for his Washington office, although he was later cleared of any wrongdoing following a government watchdog investigation.
But during last Friday’s speech, Trump failed to acknowledge the debacle while heaping praise on Carson, beginning with an anecdote from the 2016 campaign when both he and Carson were running for president.
“He was doing very well. He was knocking them dead. Everyone loved him,” Trump said, praising Carson’s performance during the 2016 presidential primaries.
The GOP frontrunner also highlighted Carson’s humility, especially in light of Trump’s own rising popularity at the time, as Carson surged in the polls before he withdrew after Super Tuesday, leading to Trump’s resounding victory in the 2016 Republican primaries.
“Tremendous religious support, evangelical support in particular, and he was going up, up, up in the polls, and I was up there, I was doing really well, and I started to get a little bit nervous about Ben, he was going up a little too fast,” Trump recounted as the audience chuckled. “And he said to me you have nothing to worry about; God put you in this position; you’re gonna win.”
Carson, also seated in the audience, received some applause as Trump addressed the crowd of Black Republican conservatives, with whom he sought to boost his appeal as President Joe Biden faced increasing criticism for his perceived lack of actions to support the Black community since assuming office more than three years ago.
Later in the speech, Trump escalated his criticism of Biden,
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