Bernie Sanders Denounces Ben Carson’s Statement On A Muslim President
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders has criticized Dr. Ben Carson for his Islamophobic comments on whether or not a Muslim should be president of the United States.
Dr. Ben Carson, one of the political outsiders within the Republican presidential nomination, stated that Islam, as a religion, is incompatible with the U.S. Constitution. Carson told Meet The Press that, “I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely do not agree with that.”
“If it’s inconsistent with the values and principles of America, then of course it should matter.”
When asked by NBC‘s Chuck Todd on whether he would vote for a Muslim, Dr. Carson stated, “It depends on who that Muslim is. Congress is a different story, but it depends on who that Muslim is and what their policies are, just as it depends on what anybody else says, you know.”
To #DonaldTrump & #BenCarson – who claim ‘Islam is un-American’ – 15-30% of enslaved Africans were Muslims. http://t.co/9rqz0WBxck
— Khaled Bey (@KhaledBeydoun) September 20, 2015
Message from Carson camp is unambiguous: Muslims are not real Americans, period. http://t.co/t9ALd2G7MZ pic.twitter.com/ow75HWdNrW
— Benjy Sarlin (@BenjySarlin) September 20, 2015
I sure hope Ben Carson can clarify for us what other federal jobs he thinks Muslims are unfit to hold besides the presidency.
— Ron Hogan (@RonHogan) September 20, 2015
On Sunday, Senator Bernie Sanders weighed in on the issue while speaking with reporters.
I am very disappointed that Dr. Carson would suggest that a Muslim should not become president of the United States.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) September 20, 2015
Sanders stated,”This is the year 2015.”
“For a long, long time in the history of America, there were people who would say, ‘you know, we don’t want a Catholic to be president of the United States.’ And then John F. Kennedy became president in 1960, and then people said, ‘oh, we don’t want a black guy, African American to be president of the United States,’ and then finally Barack Obama became president of the United States.”
Sanders continued, “Look, you judge candidates for president not on their religion, not on the color of their skin, but on their ideas on what they stand for. That’s what democracy is supposed to be about. So I was very disappointed in Dr. Carson’s statement and I disagree with him.”
Bernie Sanders is currently enjoying a favorable lead over Democratic presidential frontrunner Hillary Clinton in both Iowa and New Hampshire.
[Photo by Scott Eisen/Getty Images]
