Carson preaches conservative message in Michigan
Ben Carson stuck to a socially conservative message in his first visit to Michigan since announcing his campaign in his hometown of Detroit last May.
He decried the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling on same-sex marriage, the dangers of political correctness and the “asinine” policies of the federal government that have driven up the national debt.
“I’m not politically correct at all. I hate political correctness,” he told a crowd of hundreds at Spring Arbor University. “It’s practiced by those who want to fundamentally change our society. They don’t care whether you agree with them or not, as long as you keep your head down and shut up. Well, it’s time for us to stand up.”
The line drew a huge burst of applause from the crowd at the small Free Methodist-affiliated university near Jackson.
That antipathy toward political correctness got Carson in trouble earlier this week, when he told Meet the Press, host Chuck Todd that he didn’t think a Muslim should be president of the United States.
In a state with a large Muslim population, Carson told reporters that his remarks were taken out of context.
“We have an American culture and an American Constitution, and anybody who’s going to occupy the White House should be living in a pattern that is consistent with our Constitution and with our culture,” he said. “There is something that is known as the American way, the American dream. Why in the world would we want to give away our principles and values for the sake of political correctness. That would be the biggest mistake we could ever make.”
Likewise, he said, the Supreme Court made a big mistake with its June ruling which legalized same-sex marriage.
“I have nothing against gay people whatsoever, but I’m a pragmatic person and I realize that if you change the definition of marriage for one group, what right do you have to stop changing it for the next group and the next group,” Carson said during his half-hour speech to a packed field house.
“Any two adults, regardless of orientation, if they want to live together, draw up documents to share property, so be it. But why do you need to impose your values on everybody else.”
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