Ben Carson’s Rise To The Top

By DYLAN PETIT JAQUES

Staff Writer

Retired Neurosurgeon Ben Carson has stepped into the GOP race as a clear underdog, but is now second among most polling averages behind GOP frontrunner Donald Trump.

Before surging in the polls, very few voters knew who Carson was, much less his policy positions. However, in recent debates Carson has managed to impress some of those who were initially skeptical about his candidacy.

This serves as a shocker for political figures who have doubted the viability of his campaign due to his lack of applicable experience: Carson has never held or ran for a political office until this year.

In his book “America the Beautiful,” he explains why he decided to enter politics, stating that “[he believes] it is a very good idea for physicians, scientists, engineers and others trained to make decisions based on facts and empirical data to get involved in the political arena.”

Though Carson has little experience in politics, his resume is quite impressive. He is the first neurosurgeon to separate twins who were conjoined at the head. He also is the youngest person to ever serve as the head of a major division at John Hopkins University in 1987.

In addition, Carson was also awarded a presidential Medal of Freedom in 2008 by President George W. Bush. Carson’s rise in recent polls has also caught the attention of voters even though he has been targeted for making some very controversial statements regarding Muslims.

In a recent interview with Face the Nation, Carson said “[He] would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. [He] absolutely would not agree with that.”

It is still very unclear if Carson can successfully snag first place in the polls ahead of Trump, who still remains highly popular amongst likely republican voters. In order to get ahead of Trump, Carson must continue to ride his momentum and capitalize on his success during debates to show voters that he, out of the many candidates, is in fact the right choice for the GOP nomination.

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