UPDATES: CNN, NOT Cruz staff, responsible for Ben Carson campaign suspension ‘rumor’

cruz-and-carson-sm
Republican Presidential Candidates Dr. Ben Carson and Senator Ted Cruz

SCROLL ALL THE WAY DOWN TO SEE UPDATES (Please come back for updates, as this article is being regularly updated)

Here they are summarized:

  • UPDATE: Rubio campaign was not only aware of the “rumor,” but “pushing the narrative hard.”
  • UPDATE II: You must watch this adult in the room (video).
  • UPDATE III: Commentary on Ted Cruz’s handling of the situation by Steve Berman at The Resurgent.
  • UPDATE IV: SooperMexican points out at therightscoop that Bill O’Reilly “asked [Ben Carson] some really good questions.” (see video)
  • UPDATE V: Shocker, Donald Trump is unhinged. He would make a great president, right?
  • UPDATE VI: Sarah Palin jumps on the bandwagon; falls flat.
  • UPDATE VII: Carson campaign fends of rumors that Carson is suspending campaign at Buzzfeed. Bonus:  Carson’s “business manager and adviser Armstrong Williams” also blames Rand Paul supporters in addition to Cruz camp for fueling rumors.
  • UPDATE VIII: Conservative Review points out that Rush Limbaugh said that the “rumors of Ben Carson dropping out on Monday were actively encouraged by the Rubio campaign.”
  • UPDATE IX: Ben Carson sends fund raising letter BLAMING CNN. Ted Cruz NOT mentioned. (see screenshot)
  • UPDATE X: A tweet by Jake Tapper that literally made this author’s jaw drop.
  • UPDATE XI: CNN’s Chris Moody flat out lies about initial Ben Carson report (video)
  • UPDATE XII: CNN correspondents lose it over Ted Cruz: ‘Liar!’ ‘BS!’ (video)
  • UPDATE XIII: CNN’s Erin Burnett & Tom Foremann lie about Cruz.

**********************

Evidently, a damaging “rumor” that Dr. Ben Carson was suspending his campaign started during a Monday broadcast on CNN at around 7:43 pm est, while the Iowa caucus was in full swing. The “rumor” led to Cruz campaign staffers informing their precinct captains that they should urge caucus-goers to vote for Ted Cruz.

The Cruz camp, along with many other media sources had the same impression.

Consider this article at Business Insider, which still has the original link:

Ben Carson suspension1

The article, written by Pamela Engel, explains in an updated version:

Ben Carson’s campaign on Monday night released a statement denying that the retired neurosurgeon was suspending his bid for the Republican presidential nomination.

According to Carson’s communication director, Larry Ross, the statement cited “false media reports,” not overly ambitious Cruz campaign workers:

Contrary to false media reports, Dr. Ben Carson is not suspending his presidential campaign, which is stronger than ever. After spending 18 consecutive days on the campaign trail, Dr. Carson needs to go home and get a fresh set of clothes. He will be departing Des Moines later tonight to avoid the snow storm and will be back on the trail Wednesday…

Some media sources and others clearly had the impression that Carson was suspending his campaign:

Which led to:

Note the times on the above tweets.

Assuming that Carson was indeed suspending his campaign, Rep. Steve King clearly meant no malice when he tweeted:

Ted Cruz said in a statement that “when our political team saw the CNN post saying that Dr. Carson was not carrying on to New Hampshire and South Carolina,” his campaign “updated grassroots leaders just as we would with any breaking news story.” He conceded, however, that what the Cruz team “then should have done was send around the follow-up statement from the Carson campaign clarifying that he was indeed staying in the race when that came out.”

Basically, the Cruz team should have known better than to trust the media.

On Tuesday afternoon, Rep. Steve King tweeted:

The following tweet pointed out by Rep. Steve King illustrates that CNN was giving a very real impression to viewers that Carson was on shaky grounds.

and there was also this:

CNN completely denied that they had anything to do with what appears to be their own massive gaffe:

Cruz said in a statement Tuesday that his campaign staff saw a CNN report that Carson was dropping out, although CNN had not characterized Carson’s actions that way.

The link in the above quote returns the reader to the same article in which they were reading, which is either an error or a deliberate deception.

Astoundingly but not surprisingly, CNN and many others have poured fuel on the fire by instigating Dr. Carson into placing blame on Cruz. In a segment with Jake Tapper titled “Carson demands Cruz fire staffers involved in ‘dirty trick,'” a caption that seems to have been penned by a fourth grader laments:

“Dr. Ben Carson demands Sen. Ted Cruz’s campaign take responsibility and fire tstaffers [sic] who told Iowa voters Carson was dropping out of the race.”

It appears that it was actually CNN that “told Iowa voters Carson was dropping out of the race.”

UPDATE: Several readers/tweeters have pointed out this excellent article at Politistick, which makes the case that the Rubio campaign was not only aware of the “rumor,” but “pushing the narrative hard.” If this is true, Marco Rubio’s outrage aimed at Cruz is wholly disingenuous.

Conrad Close Tweet 1

UPDATE II: An adult in the room (thanks to ):

UPDATE III: Steve Berman at The Resurgent digs a bit deeper and makes an observation:

“Had Cruz dodged the issue, become defensive, or attempted a cover-up, I’d be upset with him. But he didn’t do any of that. It was a straightforward apology for mishandling a communication issue. There’s no evidence that the Cruz campaign planted the story about Carson’s break.”

UPDATE IV: SooperMexican points out at therightscoop that Bill O’Reilly “asked [Ben Carson] some really good questions” about the rumor, which seems to have started with CNN. Carson “didn’t really answer the question.”

Watch:

UPDATE V: Shocker, Donald Trump is unhinged. He would make a great president, right?

UPDATE VI: In case you were not clear on Sarah Palin’s true colors:

UPDATE VI:

From Buzzfeed on Monday night in an article titled “Ben Carson Isn’t Quitting His Campaign — He’s Just Going To Florida To Do Laundry,” – references to “conflicting reports” about the status of Carson’s campaign from interview with Carson’s “business manager and adviser Armstrong Williams” (who is one of the tweets from above) and a reference to “supporters of rival candidates Ted Cruz and Rand Paul:”

“There have been conflicting reports over past hours about why Carson — whose stock has plummeted in recent months as a candidate, and whose campaign has burned through millions of dollars as top officials have quit — was leaving Iowa.

Some reported that Carson was going home to rest and would not travel to New Hampshire and South Carolina, while others suggested he was going home to beat a storm and would maintain his campaign schedule.

[…]

Williams told BuzzFeed News that Carson’s schedule will not change, and claimed that the trip home was always planned. He emphasized that Carson was “absolutely not” dropping out of the presidential race. “Are you kidding me?” he said to the question.

Williams further argued that reports and rumors that Carson had changed his schedule or was behaving unusually were being fueled by supporters of rival candidates Ted Cruz and Rand Paul.”

UPDATE VII: 

Conservative Review points out that Rush Limbaugh said that the “rumors of Ben Carson dropping out on Monday were actively encouraged by the Rubio campaign.”

Listen:

UPDATE VIII:

UPDATE IX: According to this CONFIRMED Carson promotional email, Carson states that CNN “led people to believe I was leaving the race…” No mention of Ted Cruz.

Alleged Carson Mailer

UPDATE X: A tweet by Jake Tapper that literally made this author’s jaw drop. 

UPDATE XI: WATCH: CNN’s Chris Moody flat out lies about initial Ben Carson report (video)

“A condescending and defiant Chris Moody appeared on CNN’s Reliable Sources with Brian Stelter Sunday to finally address the origins of the “BREAKING” news story that Ben Carson was heading to Florida instead of New Hampshire.

During the segment, Moody completely downplayed CNN’s clear role in the confusion, and in fact, strongly implied that the initial reporting included information that Ben Carson was going to New Hampshire, which was not the case.”

UPDATE XII: WATCH: CNN correspondents lose it over Ted Cruz: ‘Liar!’ ‘BS!’ (video)

UPDATE XIII: CNN’s Erin Burnett & Tom Foreman lie about Cruz

Commentary from John Nolte from Trumpbart:

Erin Burnett: What Ted Cruz says here is completely false. Tell us exactly what happened.

Tom Foreman: At no time did CNN say that Ben Carson was dropping out of this race [ME: Cruz never said CNN said any such thing], not online, not on-air, not anywhere. And for Ted Cruz to stand on-stage once again tonight and suggest CNN did is a flat-out lie [ME: Cruz “suggested” nothing. He accurately described the CNN on-air report].

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213 thoughts on “UPDATES: CNN, NOT Cruz staff, responsible for Ben Carson campaign suspension ‘rumor’

  1. As for Cruz playing dirty tricks on Ben Carson on caucus night, Cruz apologized yesterday for what he claimed was an innocent mistake. When CNN tweeted out that Carson was headed home to Florida after Iowa instead of on to New Hampshire and South Carolina, Team Cruz told its precinct captains that “Dr. Ben Carson is taking time off from the campaign trail after Iowa

  2. I, like many other evangelicals, became particularly interested in Ben Carson since his speech at the prayer breakfast. I have been driving around with Ben Carson for President car magnets on my car since before the race began. I think we would all agree that our country is on the brink of destruction and that this race is a crucial one. That is why I am encouraged by Ben’s campaign AND Ted Cruz’s campaign. I think that either candidate would make a great president. I was very excited to see Ted Cruz’s win in Iowa this past week and like many, it made me hopeful for our country and the large numbers voting for a conservative candidate. The next day was discouraging with the allegations of wrongdoing on the part of his campaign. I have listened and watched much coverage of these events and cannot conclude that this was some evil, devious plot on the part of his campaign. Nor, I am convinced that it had any impact at all on Ben’s numbers. Frankly, based on the fact that Ted Cruz has been working tirelessly in this corrupt arena with integrity, I believe that Ted Cruz should be afforded the benefit of the doubt. Either his apology is accepted as sincere or not.

    I have been equally dismayed at Carson and his campaign’s personal attacks on Ted Cruz after this event. As an objective outsider, who likes BOTH candidates, some of the language used to describe the events by him and his campaign, appear to be exaggerated and misleading. I can understand the hurt feelings and perhaps feelings of betrayal, but I believe both Ben and Ted to be men of integrity. As our mutual goal should be the saving of this nation, I would urge the Carson campaign to focus on this campaign and STOP trying to tear Ted Cruz down. This behavior is the very “politics as usual” of which he is accusing the Cruz campaign. Where is the Spirit of unity as evangelicals? My hope is that one of them will win the nomination and whoever doesn’t will support the other……for the sake of the future of our nation!

    1. Ahh…the typical gaslighting, projecting Cruz supporter!

      Carson was on the RECEIVING end of Cruz’s dirty tricks (for which Cruz “apologized”…nudge nudge…wink wink)…

      …yet you accuse Carson of “tearing Cruz down” and “politics as usual”.

      Dear Lord in Heaven: YOU JUST DESCRIBED TED CRUZ TO A TEE!!!

    2. No impact?

      It only took 4 votes at each precinct to make a difference.

      Still think what Cruz did had no impact?

      1. First of all, Cruz himself had no knowledge of what happened until after the fact, for which he immediately tried to apologize, but failed to reach Ben Carson. When he did, Ben Carson asked him if he would make a public apology which he did, more than once.

        It may be that it would take 4 votes at each precinct to make a difference, but it in no way proves that even a single vote was changed. With all the hype and hysteria over this event, if there was one, it is likely that we would have heard about by now. So yes, as far as I can determine it had no impact on the actual vote.

        However, the broader point is that every single person (including all of us brilliant people making comments) as human beings are going to make mistakes, have miscommunication (as anyone who is married should know full well), and have their motives questioned and demonized.

        As I said, I like both candidates, and would be happy to support either candidate, but accept the apology and move on. This event, which is rife with confusion and miscommunication, is not enough for me to demonize a person who has shown a great amount of integrity over years of service and public scrutiny.

        We rail against the media, but too many people in our society also smell blood in the water and are all too quick to bite and devour anyone when given an opportunity. We are not doing ourselves any favors.

        1. I heard the end of last week that numerous people had come forward detailing how the announcement was mad and that they witnessed Carson supporters jumping ship. The reason that nothing is being made further is that one……the RNC is in charge. They want this to go away. They don’t want any more in the way of fall out over this caucus. The DNC is really up in arms about what they did in Iowa and I doubt the RNC wants to get in their way. And two…..everyone but Carson has moved on. Trump still beats Cruz over the head with it but pretty much every else has set their sights and their their rhetoric on New Hampshire.

          As to blood in the water and biting……

          I sent my hard earned dollars to Cruz based on what I now think is a lie. The mailer the weekend before was shady at best.

          At minimum I feel a bit hoodwinked.

        2. Saddened said, “We rail against the media, but too many people in our society also smell blood in the water and are all too quick to bite and devour anyone when given an opportunity. We are not doing ourselves any favors.”

          I agree! One of the greatest, most effectual tricks of the adversary is to divide and conquer. He’s done it to Christians for centuries and he’s doing it to conservatives now. And the result is the same: People don’t want to be a part of it!

          We’re not going to have a perfect candidate. Jesus Christ is not on the ballot. But any of the current Republican candidates would be better than anything the screaming Left has to offer.

          We can choose the better candidate by calmly and respectfully looking at their records and educating the public as to what a President should be. However, when we attack and denigrate each other or the candidates, whether by insult or by contradicting every post that’s doesn’t agree with our opinions, we alienate people and, to those who haven’t made up their minds, we’re just screamers, no different from the Left.

  3. I want to know why Dr Carson decided to take three days off of the campaign the very day that voting finally started. After two years of campaigning he cancels trips to NH and SC to go home to “recharge” his clothes. Who has ever done that? Do NFL players practice half a year and then take three days off after the first game? Carson needs to apologize to his supporters and to Cruz.

  4. I want to know why Dr Carson decided to take three days off of the campaign the very day that voting finally started. After two years of campaigning he cancels trips to NH and SC to go home to “recharge” his clothes. Who has ever done that? Do NFL players practice half a year and then take three days off after the first game? Carson needs to apologize to his supporters and to Cruz. Bizarre. He should just stay home and send his supporter’s money back.

    1. What Carson does is HIS business and he owes YOU absolutely NO explanation.

      Your lame attempt to cast not only doubt but SUSPICION and BLAME upon the man who was on the receiving end of this stunt is REPREHENSIBLE.

      That’s “reprehensible”…as in: PAR FOR THE COURSE for a typically stinking politician like Cruz who can switch from Dr. Jekyll (the travelling revival tent preacher) to Mr. Hyde (Mister Dirty Tricks…) at the drop of a hat.

  5. Cruz’ campaign made a mistake. Cruz apologized for it. Carson accepted that apology.

    Rubio and Paul, apparently, made the same mistake and apparently never apologized for it.

    CNN made the original error and defended themselves instead of apologizing. But no one here is suggesting that we all quit watching CNN. Amazing!

    Two days later, after Cruz apologized, after Carson accepted Cruz’ apology, Trump spread the lie that Cruz did it all on purpose. More amazing!

    And this is after Trump, who definitely knew better, spread the lie that Cruz is ineligible. Even more amazing!

    Most amazing is that Trump still has support!

    That’s why Trump could say with certainty that he could shoot someone on the street and he’d still have support.

    Didn’t we learn anything from Obama? Trump is Obama with a different agenda. Same disregard for truth, same disregard for law, same belief in his own superiority, different ax to grind.

    Big money finally has a candidate they didn’t have to buy.

    1. “Cruz’ campaign made a mistake. Cruz apologized for it. Carson accepted that apology.”

      Carson accepted it before he knew it wasn’t a mistake. If you were paying attention and not simply a TPA Teddy Prayer Breakfast shill you might have caught the segment that was on Great when Carson stated in his own words that without some sort of “adjustment” to the folks who sent the BS out it really wasn’t much of a “apology” at all.

      “Rubio and Paul, apparently, made the same mistake and apparently never apologized for it.”

      Well bad on them as well. But you aren’t here to carry their water or pimp their prayer breakfast then are you?
      That pretty much makes what you’re doing by bringing them up, deflection.

      “CNN made the original error and defended themselves instead of apologizing. But no one here is suggesting that we all quit watching CNN. Amazing!”

      Sorry but no. CNN reported what they were told. Cruz ‘s campaign embellished that report with not only emails and tweets but recorded robo calls to the precinct captains to make sure it escaped NO one from Cruz’s crew. And funny thing…….

      Every bit of it occurred AFTER Carson had set the record straight.

      “Two days later, after Cruz apologized, after Carson accepted Cruz’ apology, Trump spread the lie that Cruz did it all on purpose. More amazing!”

      Cruz sort of apologized and in that he lied some more trying to pretend it was an honest mistake.

      And you are wrong about the timing of Trump claims. Carson had already been shown the timing of things and knew that Cruz did him dirty.

      PS…….Cruz did do it on purpose. It isn’t like he accidently butt dialed all his precinct captains with texts tweets and voice mails lying and telling them Carson was out.

      “And this is after Trump, who definitely knew better, spread the lie that Cruz is ineligible. Even more amazing!”

      Yet it was still an unresolved issue for MANY until the ruling JUST THIS WEEK.

      AMAZING!!!!

      “Most amazing is that Trump still has support!”

      Actually I think it’s a close second……..

      To the wonder that is your ability to type with your fists.

      “That’s why Trump could say with certainty that he could shoot someone on the street and he’d still have support.”

      It was a joke. Put down the tissue and stop being such a bedwetting pantywaist.

      “Didn’t we learn anything from Obama?”

      Yeah we learned that no matter how pious some one talks about being……most of the time if they work in Washington DC it’s BS.

      “Trump is Obama with a different agenda.”

      First bit of your rantings I agree with. Obama has sought to destroy America and it’s people. Trump claims to want to make America great again. And frankly I believe that much out of him. I don’t know that I believe much else……but I do think he is narcissistic enough to not want everyone in America to hate him………which is what would happen if he betrayed us.

      “Same disregard for truth, same disregard for law, same belief in his own superiority, different ax to grind.”

      What laws has he broken? What’s wrong with being confident?
      What ax is he grinding?

      “Big money finally has a candidate they CANNOT buy. Unlike all the rest”

      There, I fixed it for you.

  6. I have read that people from Trump’s camp, or at least fans in Iowa, had also tweeted that Carson was suspending. Can this be verified?

    1. Did you catch Greta last night? She had Carson on so I made sure to tune in. He is still pretty pizzed. They read a statement out of the Cruz camp…..weak sauce. Even Greta clowned him on it.

      It was really pissy and seemingly blamed Carson.

      Before I changed the channel Rove was on and said something I stopped to take in.

      He stated that the difference between Cruz’s 1st and a 2nd place finish was 4 votes in each precinct.

      4 votes. So it isn’t the small potatoes issue that Cruz’s camp is trying to make it. It’s also ENTIRELY POSSIBLE that Trump is right and would have won……although now it sounds like he is an even bigger scumbag than Cruz for doing the same damn thing and then getting on TV to front like he’s mad for his good buddy Carson.

  7. Jake Tapper – CNN – on his news show “The Lead” clearly said, “Carson looks like he’s out.”

    1. Which began at the same time as the caucus and AFTER Carson’s camp had already let everyone know he WASN’T done.

      ALSO……and of paramount importance to this discussion……..BEFORE Cruz et al sent their blasts out trying to steal Carson supporters.

  8. Got a fundraising email from Carson today accusing the Cruz campaign of lying, dirty politics and asking for money. This was AFTER the one blaming CNN for the confusion.

    You know who is to blame? Carson and what is left of his team.

    Needless to day, I unsubscribed.

  9. First: do it.

    Second: deny it.

    Third: blame someone else.

    Fourth: hold a roly roller tent revival stunt to reclaim
    appearance of “moral high ground”

    Fifth: take responsibility for and
    apologize for the “misunderstanding”

    Sixth: deny it again.

    Seventh: blame the media.

    YOU FOLKS SURE ACT LIKE DEMOCRATS.

    1. Amen brother!

      I support Conservatives and their ideals because we are supposed to be the party of personal responsibility.

      When did that go out the window? When did we join the Left in being the folks who feel the end justifies the means?

  10. Many of you and Mark are clueless, and this article is bogus. CNN DID not say “Carson dropped out” but Cruz said “Carson dropped out”. There are many tweets missing from this article. Due your due diligence on Cruz. You will find that Cruz is dishonest and is no better than Obama. Shame on Cruz for doing wrong to Carson. Cruz is not who he says he is.

  11. So we have real issues going on, like the national debt:http://www.justfacts.com/nationaldebt.asp

    So people, while ISIS is slaughtering Christians, while the debt is rising, while each child born today is already in arrears by over $200,000, while Obama is issuing EO after EO, taking away our rights in the process, while Iran is developing a nuclear weapon, while tne workd is falling apart, people are getting all worked up iver Cruz because somebody on his staff simply relayed what CNN had been reporting, just goes to show you that our priorities are screwed up, and big time.

    Folks, the IOWA CAUCUS IS OVER. Stop being sore losers, and move on to NH.

    1. How very Democrat of you. We cheated you but buck up and soldier on……the world’s on fire don’t you know!!!!

      SHINEY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    2. Alessio, my sentiments exactly! We definitely have more important issues to address! But we need help solving them (as in the movie, “War Room”).

      Are you aware that Ted Cruz’ Sunday school teacher has started A Time for Prayer on Tuesday mornings to pray that God blesses our country exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think? They do mention Ted and his family, but mostly they pray for our country. They really want God’s candidate to be elected. You can sign up for the conference call at https://www.tedcruz.org/pray/

      You see, we can try to fix everything ourselves but we really don’t know the things we’d need to know to fix anything. But we know the One who does! So we work with God and let Him do the heavy lifting. After all, He is the only one who can change hearts. He is the only one who can give each of us Ephesians 3:20 days and years!

      God bless you!

  12. Thanks for the detail timeline. There is one nagging question: while everyone is tweeting and fueling the rumor, the Carson camp could have just made a phone call to and or get the attention of any of the media people and make the announcement that Carson is very much in the race. The media was all over the place and would love to have something to announce while reporting and waiting for results. Really.
    Armstrong Williams tweeted once to clear the rumor. Seems like nobody from his camp followed up. It was reported that his campaign staff was falling apart, and Williams is not even an official member of the campaign.
    And while Mrs Carson was in one of the precincts to dispel the rumors, you would think that the staff would tweet and communicate to all the precincts, that’s what you would do for survival.
    Trump and Palin are splashing spilled milk and they look childish.

    1. I agree wholeheartedly. Palin is making herself look like the arse that everyone thought she was but never admitted to while she was pretending to be a conservative. Now we know that her motives are completely self centered, and she is obviously in the hunt for a job in the Trump administration. But Trump is making himself look like an arse as well, crying over spilled milk but after a sensible concession speech just a day prior.

      There is sonething profoundly wrong in American politics. This food fight is the very thing that Dr. Carson has spojen against, it has been a central theme of his campaign. But alas, he is playing the sane game that he himself has railed against.

      Dr. Carson, the Iowa Caucus is over, there is nothing you can do to change that. Even if we performed a do-over, Cruz would win again, probably with even higher percentages as people get angrier and angrier over this dirty trick that surprisingly YOU are carrying out, along with tne hated media and other despised politicians.

      Many of us former Trump supporters were extremely disappointed when he started to personally attack Ted Cruz. We thought he as dropping the personal vendetta when he gave a wonderful concession speech, but our hope was short-lived when he jumped on this Carson Red-Herring.

      Folks, we have serious issues in America. This issue is not one of them. Please, we need to move on.

      1. Wow……you got punked Dr. Carson but quit crying and move on……I won.

        How very Barack Obama of you………….

  13. “Cruz ran for the senate on not giving amnesty to illegals, then CNN showed his agreeing with Obama, to give amnesty to certain illegals, and now on the campaign trail, he says he never agreed to give amnesty to any illegals. So he agreed to not give illegals amnesty before he decided to give amnesty to illegals, before he decided to not give amnesty to illegals. Why doesn’t anybody talk about his government shut down, which cost taxpayers 24 billion dollars? How can he be winning over anybody?”

  14. Apparently those Cruz campaign staffers were VERY EAGER to get out an unsourced CNN report vis a vis Dr.Carson’s departure for Fla. (for clean clothes) as “leaving the campaign”. The blame goes to:
    # 1 – CNN which chose NOT to verify such a report-that ‘s a BIG journalistic “NO, NO”!
    #2- Campaign staffers should ALWAYS verify such news as well. They apparently did a GREAT DISSERVICE not only to Dr. Carson, but also to Sen. Cruz. The whole mess is unforgivable, starting with a desperate CNN- which certainly knows better!
    Another example of the disservice today’s “Drive -By- Media” does this nation. (What ARE they teaching in today’s journalism schools?)

    1. Maybe, but shouldn’t the Carson people have spoken up at every caucus site where this was supposedly happening? People can blame the campaigns that were aggressively fighting for every vote, maybe even over aggressively, but Carson’s people didn’t seem to care enough about this until long after the results were in when it was too late to do anything about it.

      1. Exactly! Caucuses are for the purpose BUT that is because Carson’s people had already left before 7AM to join the Cruz campaign.

  15. This whole suspending the campaign thing is not new for Caron. It happened in OCTOBER as well. Is this some type of campaign pitty trick on behalf of Carson’s campaign manager? Is it a way to make headlines? Is it Hillary? Alinsky “Always accuse; half the people will believe.” The establishment hates Cruz as well. What a setup!!!
    Carson camp accused This sounds like carbon-copy playbook of October. Check this out:

    http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/team-carson-rejects-rumors-of-suspending-the-campaign/article/2574250

    1. Carson camp accused ABC of the same thing in October. Historically a candidate doesn’t leave the caucus before it begins. They wait for the numbers, and give their concession speech at the end. Now looking very suspicious. An apology needs to be issued to Cruz, the attack issued only because he was the front runner. Cruz should never have been singled out. Very sad.

      1. Yeah it couldn’t possibly be that some element of the Republican Party would love to see Carson out…….

  16. One important distinction that makes Cruz’s campaign guilty:

    Everything CNN wrote were true statements.

    Cruz’s (and Rubio’s) campaigns did not write true statements. They wrote willful misinterpretations.

    1. No they didn’t. Have you ever been falsely accused? How does it feel? Why do you willfully want to harm the Cruz camp with no evidence, and without one single person feeling disenfranchised enough to report they changed their vote. No Cruz surrogate said Carson “suspended” his campaign. Stop willfully projecting your hate on Cruz.

  17. So what did the Carson precinct captains do when the Cruz, Rubio, Paul captains said their guy was getting out? Wouldn’t you expect they’d call the campaign to check it out? If not, why not?

    There’s lots of huffing and puffing now but there don’t seem to be any reports from the individual caucuses that there was any dispute whatsoever about whether Carson was getting out and Cruz or anybody else was poaching votes at the time the caucus was going on.

    If there was any election fraud it was in the democrat caucus where the numbers are reported to have been changing within caucuses in real time and reported while still in dispute. Luckily for the “winner” the democrat caucus system has no audit trail.

    1. Carson said his own wife arrived at a caucus where Cruz people had already instructed them that Carson was out and asked for their votes. Candy had to get up there and reassure the people that he was not leaving the race. Just one example.

      1. Right. Why didn’t that happen in the other caucuses? That’s all that had to happen to stop any harm to Dr Carson.

        1. How do you know they didn’t?

          It could have been that you cannot unring a bell and once that has started and begins to gather momentum, nothing can be said to stave off ALL of the deserters……hence Carson managing to secure 8%.

          Obviously some were convinced…….and some felt like they were hearing politico speak from campaign surrogates and jumped ship.

          That’s why cheating is so insidious. It is so very hard to quantify even though it corrupts everything it touches. And then when you have a slimy lawyer doing the cheating….its doubly tough to prove.

  18. Trump’s insane, Rubio and his campaign/supporters and other news outlets saw the CNN report as a legitimate reason to believe Carson was dropping out.

    Here’s more
    It was gracious for Cruz to apologize for something reported by CNN,later confirmed by Jake Tapper. It was someone from Trump’s campaign that started the rumor on twitter that Cruz mislead even though CNN made the report official by implying Carson was suspending his campaign. The Cruz campaign then took that info and went with it before Carson came out late last night to correct the misunderstanding.

    Except it came from Carsons own campaign per Jake Tapper. A misunderstanding being blown up to harm Cruz. https://t.co/j3K2ny1Ozs

    It’s CNN who should be apologizing to @RealBenCarson & @TedCruz for their report or Carson for bad statement https://twitter.com/SteveKingIA/status/694613663567589376

    Carson wasn’t expected to get more than 10% anyway. His campaign has been falling apart for awhile with several of his top aides defecting to Trump.

    One reason Carson wasn’t likely to win&people thought he was suspending his campaign? https://mobile.twitter.com/NickBoneyWTV/status/694177023036628992

    Ben Carson’s former campaign manager who left campaign earlier last month, Barry Bennett, said he is helping the Trump campaign, NBC News has learned.

    Bennett, who left the campaign amid internal strife, says he’s not being paid nor is he an “informal adviser,” but that he is “just being friendly.”

    Speculation about Bennett’s new role increased after he said Thursday that Carson should drop out now and endorse Trump. The development was first reported by The Washington Post.
    http://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2016-election/former-top-carson-aide-collaborating-trump-n502151

    Odd that Carson blames Cruz when everyone heard it from CNN&Trump folks. https://t.co/EvDwCv8dJk @RealBenCarson

    Also…Cruz campaign weren’t the only ones who believed Carson was suspending his campaign…
    Uh Oh, Was Marco Rubio Guilty in the Ben Carson Dropout Rumor? http://ow.ly/3yZHR3

      1. Thanks, there’s more to it and I’m sure it will eventually come out. Bottom line Carson’s campaign has been falling apart for awhile. The entrance polls even matched the outcome of the final final caucus results almost exact.

        Trump’s whining he didn’t get supposed Carson, evangelical votes, but he wasn’t likely to get them. When Carson started dropping in December and Cruz surged most of Carson’s support went to Cruz. The exit polls even said 37% felt Cruz matched their values most and Trump only got around 6%.
        Trump’s making a mountain out of a mole hill because he’s a sore loser and media polls were wrong.

        1. Thanks for your post. I really appreciate it!

          By the way, do you know that Ted Cruz’ Sunday school teacher has started A Time for Prayer on Tuesday mornings to pray that God blesses our country exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think? They do mention Ted and his family, but mostly they pray for our country. They really want God’s candidate to be elected. You can sign up for the conference call at https://www.tedcruz.org/pray/

          You see, we can try to fix everything ourselves but we really don’t know the things we’d need to know to fix anything. But we know the One who does! So we work with God and let Him do the heavy lifting. After all, He is the only one who can change hearts. He is the only one who can give each of us Ephesians 3:20 days and years!

          God bless you!

  19. ANOTHER story that had to set the record straight about Carson and if he was suspending his campaign.

    http://www.buzzfeed.com/christophermassie/ben-carson-isnt-quitting-his-campaign-hes-just-going-to-flor#.her9lrrod

    “Carson’s business manager and adviser Armstrong Williams told BuzzFeed News on Monday night that the neurosurgeon was leaving Iowa because of a scheduled trip back home to Florida to rest after weeks on the campaign trail.”

    “Williams further argued that reports and rumors that Carson had changed his schedule or was behaving unusually were being fueled by supporters of rival candidates Ted Cruz and Rand Paul.”

    Again, only outrage goes to Cruz:

    1. Paul quit. Shall we savage him on the way out the door to satisfy your……

      He did it too childish need for moral equivalence?

  20. Even Rubio tweeted Carson was out and hoped to win over his voters! Why isn’t anyone pointing fingers at him? Why isn’t he being forced to apologize?

    1. Because the Rubio complicity wasn’t reported until after much of this was discussed.

      But if need be……Amnesty Marco is just as big a scumbag as Cruz for this dirty, reminiscent of the Dems, slimy trick.

      Happy?

  21. BS! If Cruz’s organization didn’t have a “gotcha” mentality, they’d have verified the story before they ran with it. The integrity of one’s campaign manifests itself from the top down. I find Cruz to have a very smarmy quality about him. Oh, and since when could anyone trust CNN for honest reportage?

    1. VERY smarmy. This coupled with the mailer and then his lying on TPP/TPA, see my link below,has me questioning my considering him my number two.

      In fact a month ago I would have likely told you that since by the time it gets to me…..in early May……Dr. Carson may be out. If so, I would have a been a Cruz supporter. I would have also stated that if Carson did get my primary vote but Cruz inevitably prevailed and won the nom…..he would have had my support.

      Now……I’m not so sure at all.

    2. You don’t understand caucuses. Plus, an accusation meant to do harm to someone, does not equal a truth. Follow people of character instead of your bias. Thank you.

  22. FALSE, according to “FannyMae” over at iOTWr:

    One: CNN said absolutely nothing about Carson dropping out.
    Two: when they were corrected on this “error” they didn’t report that to their campaign staff.
    Three: Cruz has apologized for the “error.”

    _____________________________

    That said:

    This form of DENIAL is classic psychopathy.
    You aren’t “helping” your guy with this.

    Given his “VOTING VIOLATION” stunt (called “FRAUD” by some),
    this “Carson is quitting” business,
    FOLLOWED by his “Travelling Revival Tent” victory speech,
    Cruz is just another stinking politician in my book.

    1. Did you read the tweets above? The Cruz camp was one of many who got the blatant impression that Carson was calling it quits. Should Ted Cruz have a team to clear news reports from CNN before disseminating info to his people? Just like with the mailers – everyone does the same thing – including RUBIO – and the phony outrage is directed solely at Ted Cruz, the only adult in the room.

      1. Ahhh the “he did it first/everybody does it” Alan Colmes Gambit. Haven’t seen conservatives trot out this canard much in my day.

        “By they fruits shall you know them.” and recent “fruits” have certainly opened my eyes about TPA Teddy. I already held a lower than snake pee opinion of Amnesty Marco but at one time I was probably going to vote for Cruz in the primary as by the time I get to vote Dr. Carson may very well have been eliminated.

        Now……might be home watching the NFL Network that day…….tough to decide.

        I cannot possibly vote for Hitlery because she is a lying scumbag. How could I then hypocritically vote for another lying scumbag just because he mouths conservative words?

        Are not ALL OF THEM right now trying to earn my trust and thereby support?

        TEDDY!!!!! This is NOT how its done.

        1. No, it is not the “everybody does it” excuse. It is the “Yeah, I made the same reasonable assumption everybody else did” statement.

          BTW, saying that “Cruz should have sent another message saying that Carson says he’s not dropping out” is a tacit admission that the CNN report can reasonably be construed as a report that someone IS dropping out. And in fact, if you watch the CNN report, that’s exactly what they did – speculated that maybe he’s dropping out.

          Basically, CNN got a message from the Carson campaign itself saying he’s not going to N.H. or S.C., but is going to Florida instead. In a political world where every candidate in recorded history either quits after Iowa or travels immediately to N.H., it’s ridiculous not to take that as a message that the guy just might be quitting. Carson is guilty of not disseminating a clear message in a situation where it’s obvious it can be taken the wrong way. He should stop complaining about lawyers using careful language, and start realizing WHY careful language is used. Careless language on his own part damaged him.

          1. “No, it is not the “everybody does it” excuse. It is the “Yeah, I made the same reasonable assumption everybody else did” statement.”

            Problem with that EXCUSE Tom is that not everybody else ran with it. So far I’ve only seen positive confirmation that Cruz and Rubio were the only ones.

            Funny how it seemingly correlates to them doing better than expectations huh?

            “BTW, saying that “Cruz should have sent another message saying that Carson says he’s not dropping out
            is a tacit admission that the CNN report can reasonably be construed as a report that someone IS dropping out.”

            Except that’s not what CNN reported. They reported the R&R trip to Fla and then on the Prayer Breakfast. Cruz and Rubio decided it was close enough to state that meant he was done and ran with that meme.

            “And in fact, if you watch the CNN report, that’s exactly what they did – speculated that maybe he’s dropping out.”

            Ahhh so we’ll make a critical campaign decision on the basis of CNN speculation.

            Sorry Tom but I don’t think you are helping them.

            “Basically, CNN got a message from the Carson campaign itself saying he’s not going to N.H. or S.C., but is going to Florida instead.”

            For a FRESH SUITCASE FUL OF CLOTHES AND THEN OFF TO THE PRAYER BREAKFAST AND NEW HAMPSHIRE…..stop liberal half speaking Tom.

            “In a political world where every candidate in recorded history either quits after Iowa or travels immediately to N.H., it’s ridiculous not to take that as a message that the guy just might be quitting.”

            Yeah….nothing bad ever came of ASSUMING things not supported by hard evidence huh?

            “Carson is guilty of not disseminating a clear message in a situation where it’s obvious it can be taken the wrong way.”

            And those Scandinavian women deserved to be assaulted because they weren’t completely covered up right Tom?

            Have some conservatives really stooped so low as to be part of the victim blaming crowd?

            Wow.

            “He should stop complaining about lawyers using careful language, and start realizing WHY careful language is used. Careless language on his own part damaged him.”

            Yeah because were the shoe on the other foot……like if Trump was questioning TPA Teddy’s ability to run……you would council all in earshot to let it go and not raise a stink.

            Sure thing Tom.

  23. How bout CNN verifying it’s own information rather then blame it on Cruz. Blame Cruz Blame Cruz. Goes to show you who is the front runner. Trump was lucky to finish second. If Carson and/or Rubio would not have been in the line up Cruz would have won 3-1 margin easily.

    1. Ruben, CNN did NOT say Carson was packing it in, quitting, throwing in the towel, ending his campaign! They just reported what their reporter Chris Moody tweeted, “Carson won’t be going to NH/SC, but instead will head home to Florida for some R&R. He’ll be in DC Thursday for the National Prayer Breakfast”. He tweeted that at 6:43 PM CENTRAL TIME, 17 minutes before the Caucasus began! Then CNN’s Dana Bash & Jake Tapper repeated what Moody tweeted – they (CNN) NEVER said he was bowing out – Cruz’s people made the assumption based on what CNN reported and RAN with it!!! Cruz apologized to Carson the next afternoon — but the damage was done. Again, IF Iowan’s switched their vote to Cruz after hearing this at Precincts, Cruz benefitted from more votes, wouldn’t have made a difference for Carson in winning, Trump is the one who losses as Cruz gets those votes.

        1. Only misleading to those who willfully sought to mislead.

          I have reviewed what CNN provided and in no way thought that it indicated Carson was quitting.

          Cruz and Rubio, opportunists that they are LIED and told their people to tell the Carson people he was toast and vote for them.

          Since we have no idea how much of it got skewed…….we have no idea if it was or was not the reason for Cruz overtaking Trump and Rubio nipping at his heels.

          Cruz used to be my number two and probably would have been my choice in a May primary that will likely have seen Dr. Carson dropping out prior to……..but now…….

          “By their fruits shall you know them…..”

          1. What about the part where the lady said that this isn’t what you do when you want to be president? Not to mention that the Cruz campaign had to have been aware that in the days leading up to the Iowa caucus Carson’s New Hampshire campaign manager and Carson’s New Hampshire Super Pac had quit and come to Cruz. So when they heard Carson was heading home and skipping New Hampshire AND South Carolina what else could they have assumed? If Cruz was being intentionally deceptive or crooked, I truly hope that it’ll cost him the election. But I don’t see this incident as proof that he was.

          2. Scott, folks jump ship all the time and for all manner of reasoning. I can only tell you what I feel in my heart.

            And that is as a God fearing true Christian man, even in the heat of competition, my morals don’t go conveniently on hold. Therefore I would have immediately reached out to Dr. Carson and discovered his actual intent.

            I’m 57 years old and hardly the most “tech savvy” person walking but even I could have thumbed out a quick question to a guy I have absolutely no right to mess over.

            Now was this Cruz dirty tricking Trump…..I don’t know that I’d be that torqued up about it because The Donald plays fast and loose with ethical behavior so I might feel he got what he deserved.

            But that isn’t the case.

            And maybe I am “over sensitive”. I am sick to death of bottom feeding lawyers who supposedly work for me toeing the legal line and then when caught on the other side, worming their way out with legal mumbo jumbo or “precise but morally horrible” exercising of the law.

            I’m sick to death of 9 lawyers finding the right for infanticide in the 4th amendment.

            I’m sick to death of people who work for me ignoring judicial orders by skirting the law just enough to force it back into the court for further clarification or just outright ignoring it until really smacked with something of substance.

            I thought…..no….I hoped and prayed that this crop of potential leaders would be different. It is really disappointing to find that many are not and then to have to fight with my fellow Americans over this pond scum.

            They don’t care one with about you or I and I don’t understand why you fight so vociferously in their defense.

            Trust me……they wouldn’t raise a hand for you if the roles were reversed…..and I don’t know if that is more sad or aggravating.

      1. This all brings up an amusing (to me) aside about the way the new fangled PC term for quitting a Presidential race is “suspending” it, as in “Rand Paul suspended his campaign”. Instead of “Carson is suspending his campaign for a couple of days of R&R and will then pick up again in New Hampshire on Thursday”. The word suspend used to imply that it was going to pick up again. Maybe it’s face-saving language, I don’t know.

    2. Sorry but Cruz is at fault. Along with the other slicker opportunist, Marco Rubio. CNN reported what Carson had told them…….that he was heading home for a fresh suitcase full of clothes, to hug the family and out at it again. He stated he’d be at the National Prayer Breakfast today and was then on to NH.

      Cruz and Rubio’s people twisted that into “he’s quitting” and pushed that narrative out to their people caucusing. Cruz’s notification went to over 1,500 precinct captains.

      I’m also betting that the folks tying up phone lines at Trump’s Iowa offices was Cruz jerks pretending to ask about how to caucus for Trump to keep Trump from being able to get calls out to rally support. There’s no way to ever prove that but given the mailer and this crap versus Carson, I have a hard time thinking otherwise……and isn’t perception the key? Optics right?

      “By their fruits shall you know them……”

      1. By my count, as I go through the comments, this is your 111th post on this article. If you haven’t made your point in 10 comments it is time to hang it up and move on. Please stop.

        1. Wow, aren’t we the little authoritarian. do YOU get paid to be a post counting Nazi or just do it to be a richard?

  24. You mean to tell me the media published something that was not true? I am shocked. Who would have thought the media would do such a thing?

        1. Yeah right up to the point that Stella put you in your place. You were in full-throated snark yet only one measly whimper after an actual person from CTH came forward to put truth to your BS.

          And as to this whole dismissal of a differing opinion…..

          How very liberal of you.

          Hacks like Melissa Tampon Earrings are easy to refute. You two dismiss this person without one wit of refutation for the information in the article I posted the link to. Also, so very liberal of you.

          I think you have your work cut out for you in dismissing it too. Hard to argue those videos with them talking. Or those links to information in the congressional record.

          But soldier on! Not like you are blind rigid ideologues intent or your way or the highway.

          BTW, again…..how liberal of you.

          1. Trevor should be pleased that I’ve returned over 100 times to engage. Allows him to charge more for advertising don’t you know Mr. Post Count Nazi. I sure wish they did tho…..but arguing with richards like yourself makes it almost as much fun as getting paid.

            Thanks!

          2. Voice of Reason? I’m also tired of you and I just got here. Even your “name” is false!

            I’m tired of your irrational, screaming, unforgiving diatribes toward someone who has the integrity to apologize for his mistake, and whose apology was accepted. If Ben Carson has forgiven him, who are you to rail on him? And why do you give CNN a pass when they not only started the rumor, they claimed no liability? And why do you give Trump a pass when he’s the one who’s stirring everyone up, making this a bigger deal than it is, and insulting Cruz?

            From now on, I will skip over all your posts and not read any of them!

          3. Thanks Chris. You didn’t have to create a sock puppet named Jeffy to whine some more.

    1. He reversed his vote on TPA actually saying it was corrupt. just hours before a decisive Tuesday vote, Cruz is changing his tune. He says he will vote to block the TPA bill, citing a series of deals between Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Democrats — namely over an unrelated issue dealing with the Export-Import Bank. He also contends that a separate trade deal being worked out by Obama could change immigration laws and not give Congress a say.

      Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/ted-cruz-no-support-tpa-trade-bill-119319#ixzz3zASMCQ1L

      1. Right……just in time for TPP to be able to pass with 51 votes and with known RINOS like McLame Hatch and Gramnesty……

        C’mon man!

  25. So then why did Cruz apologize to Carson? Is Cruz getting ready to be another Hillary that denies everything until truth comes to light? Trump can’t hide anything. He doesn’t even try.

    1. Obama is to the Left what Cruz is to the Right: Extreme! Hard to get things accomplished when an individual takes a “my way or the highway approach”. Not sure I want to keep experiencing that.

      1. You haven’t experienced that with current RNC leaders. We’ve been treated to “roll over and play dead” by the republican leadership since Reagan left office. You’ll notice McCain failed to win, Graham has dropped out with <1% support and Jeb isn't far behind him. We're sick of RINOs.

        Give me a hard-nosed conservative that will LEAD and quit being scared by the Dems and MSM.

    2. Matter of opinion considering most believe Trump skipped the debate because he was going to get hit up on his liberal record. That is something he should hide from. So yeah he does try to hide. My opinion.

      1. Trump is interviewed 5 times a day. Some days more. There were 6 prior debates.

        If all this liberal record reckoning was what scared him away…….

        Why hasn’t it happened in the last 6 months?

        Here’s a little secret…….it has.

        His past has been brought up at each debate except the Fox Business one (the only one worth a flip IMNSHO)and he’s asked about his support for Dems in the past and Dem policies every single time he is on the Rubio News Network…….oh sorry I mean Fox News.

        That dog don’t hunt Ruben.

    3. From above – pay attention to his words.

      “Ted Cruz said in a statement that “when our political team saw the CNN post saying that Dr. Carson was not carrying on to New Hampshire and South Carolina,” his campaign “updated grassroots leaders just as we would with any breaking news story.” He conceded, however, that what the Cruz team “then should have done was send around the follow-up statement from the Carson campaign clarifying that he was indeed staying in the race when that came out.”

      Basically, the Cruz team should have known better than to trust the media.”

        1. And one more bit of “human nature” that puts the bow on this for me……

          Notice how it is worded? That didn’t just come out that way in the “heat of the race”…….it was carefully considered, and likely a dozen of them sat around for a couple of minutes running the wording of the release around the table with the lawyer at the head of the table giving final approval because it conveyed their message…..Carson is quitting vote for us…….but left it ambiguous enough to plausibly deny and leave no legal recourse.

          JUST EXACTLY like the mailer. Race right up to the “legally actionable” line and then stop to stay out of hot water.

          Not exactly the behavior of a conservative or anyone I want representing me and mine.

          I thought we were sick of duplicitous slick talking lawyers? I guess not so much if they say the right things to you.

    4. Cruz just did the decent thing and apologized for any of his team that didn’t retweet Carson’s denial.

      NOTE: he is the only candidate that did this, even tho all the others were pushign the CNN story as well.

      1. But the problem with your contention here is that it wasn’t CNN’s story that got pushed by Cruz and Rubio. It was a twisting of that story with the insertion of an outright lie that has folks angry.

        Cruz’s “apology” is simply damage control after getting caught at it.

        I’d have to bet that the reason the others haven’t is that nobody else was playing Reverend Teddy in Iowa and had to counter the obvious conflict between his words and his deeds.

        Hardly anything to point to as “honorable”……

      2. Thank you, Lori. You are correct. Appreciate your post.

        If you haven’t already, please join Ted Cruz’ Sunday school teacher on Tuesday mornings to pray that God blesses our country exceeding abundantly above all we can ask or think. You can sign up for the conference call at https://www.tedcruz.org/pray/

        You see, we can try to fix everything ourselves but we really don’t know the things we’d need to know to fix anything. But we know the One who does! So we work with God and let Him do the heavy lifting. After all, He is the only one who can change hearts. He is the only one who can give each of us Ephesians 3:20 days and years!

        God bless you!

    1. Paul team and Trump teams also. Pretty much every candidate had members of team and supporters retweeting CNN tweets and hoping to get Carson’s voters.

      Carson’s team should have been on top of media. It’s not other candidates’ job to monitor Carson’s media.

  26. I did see news that Carson suspended his campaign – briefly – after some staff were injured in an accident. The original article I read was very poorly written, as the urls imply:

    https://weather.com/series/the-lift/video/carson-suspends-campaign-after-staffer-dies-in-a-winter-storm-accident

    http://ktla.com/2016/01/19/ben-carson-staffer-killed-3-volunteers-injured-in-iowa-van-accident-campaign-suspended/

    It took careful reading to see that the suspension was not a termination, but a pause to focus on those that died and were injured.

  27. When a candidate says that instead of getting to New Hampshire at 0500 to campaign, like all the other candidates, he will go to Florida for R&R, he’s got nobody but himself to blame for sending what can AT BEST be described as mixed messages.

    Maybe this crybaby act will work on some low information voters, or some people that aren’t going to change their minds no matter what, but to the rest of the electorate it just looks like weakness. Can you imagine when Vladimir Putin does something that “just isn’t faaaaaaaair!!!”?

    1. Sorry but this coupled with the mailer from last weekend has really changed my mind about Cruz.

      BTW, CNN NEVER reported Carson was quitting.

      Cruz and Rubio people saw he was heading to Florida and then stated their ASSUMPTION that Carson had quit and put that out to their precinct captains.

      The decent God fearing Christian, consistent conservative Cruz claims to be would have contacted Carson and confirmed. He then could have asked Carson to have his folks jump to Cruz.

      The slimy bottom feeding lawyer attempting to win at all costs because that seat in the Oval Office is like The Precious to Golum, runs with it and says to anyone interested…….

      It’s easier to beg forgiveness than beg for permission.

      1. Spot on “Voice of Reason! Nailed it!!! And I’m undecided right now, same as my circle of friends and family, it’ll be interesting…

        1. I thought RUMOR was started out of CARSON’S campaign staffer in NH saying he was not continuing on …Where is this staffer and where @MOODY jumped on it

          1. Also the whole TWIITER SPHERE jumped on this , it wasn’t just CRUZ
            all the lil reporters of smaller outlets were questioning what CNN put out along with MOODY tweet – SS are taken

          2. Sorry but you are misinformed.

            The Cruz camp has come out with the minutia and it isn’t as you contend.

      2. Voice of Reason – you were NEVER a Cruz supporter, please stop lying. You have over 100 posts on this article spewing the same BS post after post. Let’s be honest, you a paid shill poster, probably for the Carson campaign. Stop it.

        1. Its one thing for your messiah to tarnish a good man like Carson but it’s another to make false accusations against me.

          Since you feel like you are on the staff here as post count Nazi in chief……care to explain how that’s in keeping with “Be nice. Keep it clean. Stay on topic. No spam.”?

          As to support for Cruz….would a scan of a cancelled check of the money I sent directly to his campaign be sufficient proof?

          Do you seriously think I would be this mad if I had only a passing interest in this? I gave him money thinking he was the real deal only to find out he’s really more of the same.

          Isn’t that what we’re supposedly against?

          And PS…….you are FAR from the only game in town and I have pretty prolific fingers. Discus, WordPress, over at BeckerHead central in another of the strongholds of TPA Teddy lovers, shoot I even moderated Ann Coulter’s board for a couple of years…..til just before she shut it down. I type over 100 WPM so it really isn’t a hardship in case you had concerns…..

  28. Ben Carson needs to stop complaining that Ted Cruz’s people may have thought he’d get out of the race after yesterday. Carson and his campaign are responsible for those rumors by telling a CNN journalist before the Iowa results were in that Carson would give his speech early, and would then fly back to Florida. See here: https://twitter.com/moody/status/694320149432651776

    Since this isn’t amateur hour and serious candidates don’t just ‘go home’ when the primaries have started, it was completely reasonable for others to assume he was bowing out.

    I understand that playing the victim often works well in politics, but I’ve got no patience for these games.

    Ruh roh Raggy..

    http://politistick.com/uh-oh-was-marco-rubio-guilty-in-the-ben-carson-dropout-rumor/

    1. Was watching Dana Bash and Jake Tapper report that on my TV in real time, not defending CNN, or anyone here, just pointing out everyone “assumed” and you know what they say about the word “ass-u-me”! This report shows Rep. Steve King of Iowa tweet going out at 7:20 PM, I saw his tweet and took a screen shot, my photo of his tweet says 5:20 PM, well before the Caucasus started. Again, “assumptions” were made and I really can’t blame Carson for being upset, I’m still undecided, don’t like how Ted Cruz handled this, glad to see he offered an apology. Dr Carson’s people shouldn’t have made that statement, rookie mistake, new to this political campaign workings. If people did switch the vote to Cruz due to this — Trump is the one who lost first place.

        1. I’m in Central time zone, SAME as Iowa where Rep. Steve King’s tweet came from, and the caucusing is 5:20 PM, Central time.

      1. Sorry but no. Not exactly right. Just close enough to right to be legally unassailable.

        Pretty much sick of that from the people that used to work for me.

    2. You’ll see the tweet below, published less than a minute later, clarifies the statement and says Carson will stay in the race. Steve King had no excuse.

  29. Did Ted Cruz’s staff verify the story with Carson’s staff? They had a full day in which they could have verified the story by any number of methods. The fact that no other report came out saying that Dr. Carson was withdrawing might have given them some clue, if they were looking for a clue. Consider also that these are people representing a lawyer who would have Americans believe he is one of the best lawyers of the day and the best possible choice as our next Commander in Chief. Yet this man tells us he can’t manage a campaign staff well enough to prevent them from violating the voting rights of hundreds of Iowans by circulating a rumor they must have easily known was false, thus depriving them of their right to vote according to the dictates of their own consciences.
    Does anyone of intelligence really believe that the great Constitutional lawyer, Ted Cruz himself, did not know of and understand the full legal implications of what was done, and approved it based on the idea that he could maintain personal credible deniability? These are the same political strategies employed 4 years ago by Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in regard to Benghazi. In the case of Benghazi, 4 men were betrayed to their deaths. In this case, the voters of Iowa, any American who values democracy, and the United States Constitution were all betrayed, for the political advantage of one man and his indoctrinated followers.

    1. John L Battey,

      CNN reported it before 15 minutes before the caucus started. Not the day before. That’s important as to the timeline. However, the news was out there because of poor CNN reporting, that’s normal for CNN.

      1. Ted is a lawyer and understands the responsibility to verify information. No other source was reporting it & he could have called Dr. Carson at any time. He acted like the lawyer he is in order to maintain deniability. It was an opportunistic knee-jerk reaction, and not the sort of decision making we need in charge of a nuclear arsenal.

        1. Hello! There was no chance to check it out as it was *15 minutes* prior to caucus. They would’ve been foolish NOT to try to utilize the information. The point is to WIN and given the report was being aired on CNN it was fair game.

          1. iowacaucusmom, Excellent points, the timeline of 15 minutes prior to caucus and everyone’s desire to win. There is no way Carson is going to get a call from Cruz, Trump, Rubio, or Paul trying to figure out if he is actually getting a fresh set of clothes 1,181 miles away. It has now been two days and with the benefit of reading all the submitted evidences, I am still saying Carson needs to explain why he left Iowa BEFORE the voting. Carson is making a big mistake with his accusations against Cruz. This is going to backfire, just wait.

          2. If this was true that it was announced 15 minutes prior to the caucuses starting how did Cruz send voters a letter stating that and to vote for him???

          3. Sheilaz,

            There are these things I don’t think you’ve heard of called cell phones. You can get a text to an entire mailing list out in 30 seconds with those gadgets.

          4. Yup Random……how do you think Cruz and Rubio……in that exact same 15 minutes go the message out to all their precinct captions?

            If you can disseminate that info to everyone in the blink of an eye to benefit your cause…….you could certainly correct the error just as easily.

            That is if you are actually a TRUE Christian person and not just a smarmy lawyer mouthing the words you remember from your youth of sitting disinterestedly at your preacher daddy’s feet.

        2. John, Ted was not at this HQ he was at a caucus site talking to voters. Ted was not in on this, just like a CEO does not micromanage a corporate communication, Ted lets the professionals do their jobs. CCN reported the story after 7, the staff did their job and got the word out ASAP. This Happened 30 minutes before the voting, not 30 days, time was short and staffers took for granted that CNN would report facts (a reasonable assumption), The real blame lies with Ben Carson for release a states that is universals for “I’m dropping out”.

          1. “I heard it on TV.” My staff is to blame.

            Sounds like another ‘brilliant” Harvard lawyer

            LOL

          2. Sorry but this is so think it borders on invisible.

            Are we not tired on somebody who allegedly works for us have a freaking excuse for everything that occurs under the sun and it is NEVER due to their behavior?

            I for one have had enough.

    2. How in the name of God do you expect a candidate in the middle of an election night to investigate legit media reporting? That’s NOT his job.

      Seriously, it’s time to quit deflecting blame to make ourselves feel better and put blame where it belongs.

      1. Carson’s team put the info out there, and apparently they did a poor job of it.

      2. CNN took info, ran with it, without verifying it meant he was dropping.

      3. ALL the campaigns used the CNN story, believing it legit.

      4. It is Carson’s team’s job to manage the Carson news w/ media, not the other candidates.

      5. Carson did no worse, or better, in the election than the polls indicated. That’s because, thanks to Trump and his hammering negatives about Carson (none of the other candidates have done that), Carson slid in the polls and in voter attn.

      6. Based on info, it was appropriate to think Carson dropping. No serious candidate leaves IA – with 6 days to campaign before important NH vote – for R&R or clean socks for a few days and then heads to DC on Thursday for anything (leaving only 3 days to campaign in the entire state of NH). They race from IA to NH with a thermos of coffee and sleepy eyes, and get about the business of running for president.

      1. With all available info. now we have a timeline of the media, persons and campaigns involved. Cruz is only party taking personal responsibility and apologizing for their part in this confusion. This is called integrity. This post of opinion gives excellent logic and human thought about why the widespread story seemed fact to them. Who started the ball rolling with poor communication? A campaign that’s had problems managing their poor communication. Dr. Carson admitted yesterday his agenda is to stay in race only to expose something American’s have figured out 200yrs. ago….politics is dirty. His agenda creates more confusion and a disservice to voters. The American people are trying to select a president. There are too many candidates with money left staying in primaries to push their agendas instead of their qualifications for our next commander in chief.

      2. Sorry but your entire diatribe is built on a faulty premise and thereby falls flat.

        CNN never indicated Carson was dropping. That was all Cruz and Rubio. The rest of your screed is just more justification so that you can suave your conscience and vote for a scumbag.

        “By their fruits shall you now them……”

        1. Voice of Reason – Did you in fact read every part/component/update of this article? Or are you just posting numerous times to deflect blame from Carson onto Cruz/Rubio? I am not sure how any objective literate person can blame this flap on anyone but Carson’s campaign and CNN.

          Just an FYI, there isn’t 1 caucus voter (out of 187,000) that said they were affected or changed there vote because of this Carson misstep. NOT ONE!!! Because if there was even one, they would be paraded all over the media.

          So please stop the righteous indignation. Carson needs to man up and take responsibility for this. Oh and a couple of other items to put this in context for you….Sunday night Carson’s top 4 people for his NH campaign resigned and Monday his top fund raiser resigned and joined the Cruz campaign. Maybe, just maybe, blaming Cruz for this is pay back for losing some of his staff the day b4 the caucus to Cruz.

          1. No I haven’t. I’ve seen enough of the authors work in these comments and other links provided that I don’t care to engage in any more of the justification nonsense surrounding an event I witnessed as it occurred.

            As to why no one has come forward…..its been a whopping 2 days. Give them a minute. And who exactly would they tell? The one spot you might of thought of a year ago would be Fox but they’ve alternated between being in the tank for Jeb and now Marco…..and Marco was right there with Ted spreading this scurrilous tripe. So even if you went to Fox I’m not convinced anymore that they’d show it.

            All this being said…..I find it awfully telling that you…..an alleged conservative……..seemingly are taking great glee in the demise of a VERY good and decent man. Over a political position.

            Wear that proud fellow traveler.

      3. The truth is far more complex, and in no wise did Ted Cruz lie. CNN reported that Dr. Ben Carson was going to Florida. Congressman Steve King of Iowa hoped that more voters would select Cruz over Carson, and he tweeted his support. CNN then reported that it seemed that Carson was dropping out. Cruz staffers followed these media reports, and so did Rubio’s campaign. Here is the link of the timeline

    3. Get your facts straight the report came out 14:58 minutes before the event not all day your just a mouth breather with little facts verify just like you want Cruz to do good for the goose good for the gander.

        1. Are you paid by the post? By my account, reading the comments section, you have over 60 posts making the same point. Stop!!! It is getting old. We understand your position, enough already.

          1. Do you get paid to be the post count Nazi?

            I guess you have so many TPA Teddy lovers here to parrot this nonsense you feel comfortable being a richard.

  30. There is a possibility of Carson becoming president some day and yet I see so much similarity to Obama. On the night of Benghazi we are still trying to figure out where exactly Obama was. The next day, Obama blamed the whole matter on a video by some obscure guy in CA. Today, we are trying to figure out where Carson was Iowa election night, after 5pm. His staff said he went to Florida to get a “fresh set of clothes.” The following morning, Carson blamed Cruz for spreading a rumor and stealing his votes. But, the question remains: Why did Carson leave Iowa at 5 pm right at voting time? If he had won Iowa (at one time he was #1 in the polls there), how would he have addressed the media, staff, and more importantly, the voters who supported him? Is it possible to give a victory speech on an airplane or in an entirely different state, forget about the fresh clothes thing? Although the gravity of situation is much more serious under Obama (Americans died), Carson should make a promise to the American people, if elected president, he will refrain from conducting himself like Obama, with an unexplainable absences.

    1. Like all of the other candidates, Ben Carson was at a rally for his volunteers in Iowa on the night of the caucus. Have you not seen the video? The real question is “Where was the great lawyer, Ted Cruz, when his team of supporters was issuing lies based on a retracted article from the previous day?” Ted Cruz could have called Dr. Ben Carson at any time to verify the story, but he lacked the integrity or even the common courtesy to take that simple step, because it would have meant Ted giving up his lawyerly deniability.
      Ted Cruz is a scheming shyster driven by a messianic lust for power & high office.

        1. Great questions, Stephen – I am a Carson fan but I find that he and Cruz could have come together and put the blame on CNN, where it is due.

          … and Amen, Joe.

          1. CNN never stated he was dropping out in that report, just gave insinuation and opinion. It was pretty weak to go on, and no excuse for not correcting. I think it is wrong to excuse it away with much of the media blaming Carson?? Ridiculous. If someone did this to your campaign, you bet you’d be screaming about it, as well you should.

          2. Texmom, If I was Carson I would be freaking out at my own staff, who gave CNN the impression he was dropping out.

        2. Well yes, he should have verified the information about Dr. Carson. He claims to be a honest christian, and looking out for the truth about anything about anyone is the right thing to do. Rubio was correct about Cruz, by saying that Cruz thinks he thinks he’s the one that is always correct in matters. In my book, Trump won Iowa and now Cruz will have to face Dr Carson, especially Trump.

          1. Might want to check that Columnist Conrad Close whose Twitter photo states: “I AM VOTING FOR MARCO RUBIO” tweeted that “Rubio campaign the narrative hard that Carson is dropping out. Obviously looking to pick up votes for Carson” #iacaucus…posted Feb 1 at 5:29pm.
            So CNN picking up thread 15 minutes before caucus at 7pm PUTS WHO’S FINGERS IN THE COOKIE JAR FIRST???

            Find at: http://politistick.com/uh-oh-was-marco-rubio-guilty-in-the-ben-carson-dropout-rumor/

            YOU are ALL ENSNARED in a whaa-whaa baby fit known as a TRUMPER-TANTRUM, cuz TRUMP is mad he is now a LOSER of IA caucus… What is amazing is that Sarah Palin is falling into Trump’s sphere of influence…hook…line…and sinker… WOWSAH…who’d a thought it? She didn’t check her facts on instigator ? Has she become a shill ?

          2. Rubio is about two faced establishment as they come. He tells the American people one thing and does just the opposite. Rubio and his staff were pushing this narrative about Carson getting out of the race hard first while talking bad about Cruz. Rubio has proved himself a lying establishment snake. Rubio and Trump are nothing but soar losers.

          3. Um, Rafael, Ted Cruz didn’t tweet or post anything remotely about Carson the entire afternoon or evening. So, get off Cruz’s back. The tweets that you are focusing on were staff members reacting to CNN and Rubio tweets from hours earlier. Deal with it and move on!

          4. Except that officially Cruz won Iowa, and in fact he set a record for most votes EVER in the Iowa Caucus for a Republican. I hope that by some miracle that there is a “Re-Caucus” in Iowa, because Cruz will yet again set new records as people become more and more infuriated over this strawman ssue.

          5. So Starkman….you contend that they operate outside the immediate purview of the candidate? Provide information to anyone and everyone without one wit of concurrence from the candidate?

            Seriously?

            Is this your first election following politics?

          6. Um, where in the email sent out by campaign does it actually say that Carson is dropping from the race? Have you even read the email that was sent from Cruz? All he did was repeat what CNN said…that he was leaving Iowa after the caucus and not attending NH…then it says, try and get votes for him…maybe, just maybe, they felt the same as others. That not staying on the trail as a serious contender doesn’t show leadership. Not one spot in the email said that he was dropping from the race. Not one! Every one is blowing this out of proportion for no reason.

        3. No, Joe. It was Cruz’s responsibility to not ACT on unconfirmed media stories. I am sure all of the candidates have intercommunication with other candidates so it was his campaign’s responsibility to contact Carson’s campaign to verify the CNN story BEFORE acting on it. Shameful.

          1. So why didn’t Carson’s campaign call Cruz’s campaign and set the record straight before voting began? I like Ben but he brought all of this on himself. His own release sounded like he was near suspending his campaign. Where Ted erred was in trusting “news” disseminated by CNN.

          2. Sorry Daniel but where TPA Teddy erred was in taking something that skirted a subject and dragging it straight into lying territory for political gain.

            That’s liberal behavior and used to be out of bounds on our side of the aisle.

          3. Of course, you, Anita, have verified every news story, including from CNN, that you’ve heard before acting on it, right?

            Cruz’ campaign made a mistake. Cruz apologized for it. Carson accepted that apology.

            Rubio and Paul, apparently, made the same mistake and apparently never apologized for it.

            CNN made the original error and defended themselves instead of apologizing. But no one here is suggesting that we all quit watching CNN. Amazing!

            Two days later, after Cruz apologized, after Carson accepted Cruz’ apology, Trump spread the lie that Cruz did it all on purpose. More amazing!

            And this is after Trump, who definitely knew better, spread the lie that Cruz is ineligible. Even more amazing!

            Most amazing is that Trump still has support!

            That’s why Trump could say with certainty that he could shoot someone on the street and he’d still have support.

            Didn’t we learn anything from Obama? Trump is Obama with a different agenda. Same disregard for truth, same disregard for law, same belief in his own superiority, different ax to grind.

      1. Please pay attention. The story wasn’t from a “retracted article from the previous day.” Go back and read, watch, and listen to what you are commenting on. This was breaking news on CNN 15 minutes before the caucuses started. Why would you call another candidate over a news report CNN got from Carson’s staff. He should be directing his ire withon.

        1. You are spot on… the fault lies with CNN or the Carson source of their article… this is happening in the midst of the caucus activities… the caucus is live as this happens… there were supposed to be reps of the Carson and other campaigns at the sites?! They could have corrected this… so why didn’t they? It seems to me to be misdirected to attack one candidate for the fault that lies with the MSM CNN or the Carson campaign source. If any fault lies with Cruz then it lies also with the other candidates, Trump, Rubio, Rand, etc… because they also knew or should have.. Cruz was right to apologize for the lack of vetting and forwarding the update on his campaign’s staff, but that isn’t really significant considering the Carson and Rand and Trump and Rubio and Bush and other campaigns could have debunked the CNN info as well. The focus on Cruz is plainly political… from where I stand… i am discounting the whole thing except that I have less respect for Carson than I did and Trump is just showing he should never be president… someone used the word “unhinged”. I am so tired of his incessant ad hominem attacks on everyone who doesn’t kowtow to him… too narcissistic for my liking.

          1. Sorry….but if Cruz and Rubio had reported what CNN said it would be one thing and the blame would lie with the network.

            But they didn’t.

            And that’s the rub for a whole bunch of folks that the shine is now off the Cruz rose for.

            This is America dude.

            We don’t cotton to cheaters. Period.

          2. well the fault actually lies with the member of the Carson staff who made the announcement in the first place,he should be fired for making such a statement in the first place.they should know better than to make a statement like that w/out ben’s approval but then ben must have poorly organized staff to do something like that and that reflects badly on Ben for not having more control over what his staff says /does

      2. Why was it Cruz’s responsibility to confirm anything about Carson?! Do you think the candidates called Rand Paul to ensure the facts of his campaign “suspension” were accurate? Come on. Face reality. The caucus night in Iowa is fast paced, fueled by political ferver, with everyone talking at once. Plus, all polling places were sealed shut at 7pm – no entry permitted. The *breaking news* that Carson was heading home was worthy of speculation. Candidates just don’t suddenly leave during a caucus or primary without very good – and clearly stated – reason. Speculation runs rampant during the Iowa Caucus. And they speculated (all candidate sponsors) based on CNN report. Period. Relax.

        1. A couple of reasons it would be Cruz’s responsibility to confirm, but really this is based on a false premise…..but I’ll play anyway. Really though……had Cruz stated what CNN reported without embellishing it to try to cheat Carson out of votes we wouldn’t even be talking now.

          Why is it incumbent on Cruz to ask……

          1. He is the one playing Rev Teddy in Iowa. His proselytizing was at minimum creepy. I was wondering when he was going to go full on Pentecostal and start snake wrangling.

          2. We are already inundated with folks who allegedly work for us but spend the lion’s share of their days skirting the bounds of good/bad, right/wrong and legal/criminal. Most of us non-Cruz apologists are sick to death of it.

          3. The ethical thing to do (I know….expecting a lawyer to behave ethically in something more important than hopscotch is on par with expecting to get a third set of teeth) would have been to contact Carson and if he was truly dropping out….to formally ask for him to encourage his supporters to jump to Cruz.

          I know this isn’t beanbag……but we aren’t scum-sucking Dems either.

          1. May I ask this: Why is it all Cruz campaign? Did anyone not see that Rubio camp actually was first to act on the rumor and that Paul camp jumped on it too? Why no grief for them? I’ll tell you what? If I’m running for office and I get news from CNN that another candidate is not going on to N.H. or S.C. but home to FL, I would have done the same damn things these camps did (try to be the first to get his votes). That being said and, although I do not believe he needed to, Cruz publicly and personally apologized to Dr. Carson for not correcting the record. Do I think it was his responsibility to do so? No! Whereas, here you have Marco Rubio trash-talking the Cruz campaign and swearing his camp did not spread the rumor. I think we can all see this has been proven false and once again, Marco Rubio, has been caught lying. I can and do respect Ted Cruz. I think Marco Rubio is the snake in the grass.

          2. Have any of you ever been to your precinct caucus? You sign in stating who you intend to vote for. No one can come or leave after it is started. If you leave you can not come back. There is a time set for voting. Before the voting there will be lots of talking from everyone on why you should vote for a not B or B not C etc. Everyone will talk for their candidate. You will try to get votes for your candidate. I was at our precinct caucus once and the PCO changed his vote after the vote. He changed from one person to another. This is not the same as an election where you go to a polling place or vote by mail with a secret ballot.

          3. So that i don’t get crossways of the post count Nazi Chris I’ll combine my responses to you Jean as well as BJW.

            Jean,

            I can only speak for myself. The reason I haven’t made much mention of Rubio OR Paul being involved is because when I began to discuss this hear it was only known that the Cruz camp was involved.

            Trust me, I don’t really need another reason to spit when I say Marco Rubio, I’ve simply been discussing this with Cruz supporters here before the news of the other s came to light.

            As to doing the same thing myself……That’s not me. It is arguably cheating and I don’t want to win by doing something that even sniffs of shenanigans. ESPECIALLY when I could clear up any possible misconceptions with a 5 second text or phone call.

            That being said……Anyone remotely under the impression Carson was out was told by the Carson camp within minutes of the original “misconception”……so I know then I DEFINITELY would not have run with it. I believe in my heart of hearts that the Cruz, Rubio and Paul camps all got the follow up info BEFORE they put out their call to grab his supporters. And that is the type of crap I thought those of us on the right were sick of coming out of Washington.

            BTW Jean, I heard this morning that the Trump camp may have done so also. If so……this sinks to a low like we’ve rarely seen in politics. It smacks of the type of cynicism that has many of our fellow Americans feeling like there is absolutely no point in participating. The game is rigged and no matter what we do it will never change.

            Not that doing something and then castigating a rival over the very same behavior sounds right up The Donald’s alley……I sincerely hope we have not fallen that far.

            BJW,

            While I have not participated in the process I’ve had it explained to me in depth several times. Also, in my youth, I participated in several union votes that were handled similar to the process you decide.

            All this delegate stealing mess aside……I don’t know that I feel all that comfortable with the “caucus” process. Seems to be too wide open and fraught with opportunities for shenanigans.

          4. Voice of Reason? said, “had Cruz stated what CNN reported without embellishing it to try to cheat Carson out of votes we wouldn’t even be talking now.”

            Absolutely not true! Trump made sure we’d be talking about it as long as possible! Trump is also the one who has been spreading the lie that Cruz is not eligible when he knows full well that current U.S. law says he is!

            But, even through all the unreasonable attacks, insults, and childish behavior, Trump still has support! That’s why Trump could say with certainty that he could shoot someone on the street and he’d still have support.

            Didn’t we learn anything from Obama? Trump is Obama with a different agenda. Same disregard for truth, same disregard for law, same belief in his own superiority, different ax to grind.

            Big money finally has a candidate they don’t have to buy!

          5. Sorry Sir but this has nothing to do with Trump in the time it was occurring. Once the deed is said and done what Trump has to say on it matters not one wit.

            It’s a VERY nice attempt at deflection tho.

            I give you points for the effort.

        2. What Cruz/his campaign did is a crime, according to Iowa law, a Class D Felony punishable by up to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of $750 to $7,500. (Iowa Code § 902.9.).
          CNN did not lie, they reported what Carson’s camp had stated. CNN never said “Carson is quitting”. Cruz and his minions are responsible for twisting CNN’s report and propagating that lie of Carson quitting. Cruz needs to answer for this crime and no, his lame apology just doesn’t get it. I’m afraid that Cruz is much like the usurper in our WH now.

          1. Amen Brenda! And this afternoon on Breitbart on Twitter, they played two voice messages that went out to the various precincts — one from a woman in Galveston, TX, the other from Iowa, just a few minutes after the caucasus had begun, I listened to both — both stated, “Carson is suspending his campaign – tell your voters to vote for Cruz”.

            BHO is to the Left what Cruz is to the Right, both extremists — “my way or the high way”, and isn’t it interesting — both have had questions arise regarding whether they are Natural born Citizens and eligible to be President. Voter tampering-cheating are now attached to both. Perhaps Cruz believes if Obama can do it — why not me? Better to apologize than ask permission.

      3. John L. Battey, you stepped out of the box and made a valid point about Cruz’s opportunity to contact Carson at any time. Thank you for sharing that.

      4. What is this retracted article from a previous day? The news story was from the day of the Iowa Caucus, just as it was beginning. Trump is the schemer you describe in your last statement.

    2. Hmmmm….Might want to check that Columnist Conrad Close whose Twitter photo states: “I AM VOTING FOR MARCO RUBIO” tweeted that “Rubio campaign the narrative hard that Carson is dropping out. Obviously looking to pick up votes for Carson” #iacaucus…posted Feb 1 at 5:29pm.
      So CNN picking up thread 15 minutes before caucus at 7pm PUTS WHO’S FINGERS IN THE COOKIE JAR FIRST???

      Find at: http://politistick.com/uh-oh-was-marco-rubio-guilty-in-the-ben-carson-dropout-rumor/

      WE are ALL ENSNARED in a whaa-whaa baby fit known as a TRUMPER-TANTRUM, cuz TRUMP is mad he is now a LOSER of IA caucus… What is amazing is that Sarah Palin is falling into Trump’s sphere of influence…hook…line…and sinker… WOWSAH…who’d a thought it? She didn’t check her facts on instigator ? Has she become a shill ?

      1. Enough, stop saying Rubio “started it”.. Cruz twisted it, ran with it. Pushed emails. Made people stand up in caucus locations and claim Carson is out. Not even discussing the mailers… There’s no denying this. Fuck Rubio. Cruz is a pile of shit…. *waives bye bye Cruz! Watching his numbers drop like a ROCK.

        1. The first polling post Iowa I saw seemed to indicate that this benefited the very guy Cruz has been fighting with recently….Marco Rubio……in New Hampshire.

          Trump was steady pre and post Iowa at 29% with Cruz dropping one point but with Rubio surging ahead of Cruz into second.

          I find this particularly distressing because it continues Rubio’s “3, 2, 1” plan. 3rd in Iowa, 2nd in New HAmpshire and a win in South Carolina.

          While recent developments have me rethinking support for Cruz, Marco Rubio should only sniff the White House on a guided tour. Rubio, Krispy Creme, Kasich and Jeb CANNOT be allowed to become POTUS.

          Ever.

    3. You know , before this “incident”, I thought Dr. Carson would have made a great president. Let’s assume that the Cruz campaign was aggregious here and willlfully passed on a falsehood, which I do not believe for a minute but for the sake of argument let’s establish this as a premise. Would a “presidential” leader note the incident, express some concern, accept the Cruz apology, and then move on, or would he stomp his feet, cause his team and fans to stomp their feet and whip them into a frenzy?

      I mean people, if a re-caucus were done today in Iowa, do you think that Cruz would lise votes, or do you think he would break the record yet again as backlash over this incident caused even more people to cast in his favor?

      This incident is further highlighting tne sickness that exists today in American politics and the very oerson who we thought was above this is actually a primary instigator.

      1. Carson went after “the media” first, then later blamed Cruz. I think he saw an opportunity to bolster his lagging campaign so turned his sights. #lastditcheffort

        1. I also think Carson is using this to get back in the limelight. He was also recently whining that he got the least amount of time at the last debate. His numbers are falling, his staff is leaving him (even though he says it was pre-planned). I think Dr. Carson may not be all we thought him to be. I know I have lost a lot of respect for him; he was my number 2 guy.

      2. Ok lemme get this straight……

        You seemingly contend that had the roles been different……say Trump had cheated Cruz….your council to your Cruzbot homies would be to ruck up and move on??????

        Riiiiight.

        And I wouldn’t be sure of a “do over” yielding the same results. Cruz was the one that went all Christian Bill Starbuck on Iowa and I doubt sincerely that most true Christians excuse malfeasance and dirty tricks as cavalierly as you do.

        “This incident is further highlighting tne sickness that exists today in American politics and the very oerson who we thought was above this is actually a primary instigator.”

        I agree. Cruz was my #2 at some point. Now…..I have a hard time envisioning voting for him even in the general.

        I may have to join the Ronulans and vote for Gary’s Johnson.

        Well played Cruzbots.

        1. Your false premise is that Cruz wronged Carson. Carson’s own people and CNN wronged Carson. Did you read the article?

          1. Yet CNN NEVER stated he was dropping out. Cruz and Rubio alone own that dubious distinction.

            So it’s you who has built up a pathetic strawman to protect TPA Teddy.

          2. the question remains who on Carson’s staff gave out the info in the first place and why and did they do so with Carlson’s approval and knowledge. if they did it w/out shows carlson had poor control over the staff.

          3. I agree. I don’t believe the Cruz team did wrong on purpose. Carson was not polling very well before this happened, now Carson wants to shift the blame for that onto Cruz. I went into this liking Carson, but now he makes me sick to watch him.

      3. does anyone think that had this not happened the # of delegates any candidate would have won would have changed much we are basically talking about at the most a handful of delegates might have switched from one candidate to another not enough to really make any difference in the race. we can also blame the media for making a big issue out of the IA caucuses themselves

    4. Whoa! This is a surprising stretch! It really isn’t anyone’s place to tell a candidate when and where he should be. They set their own event schedules, and if you know you have a few days and a scheduled National Prayer Breakfast before your scheduled event in NH, it makes perfect sense to take care of some personal business at home when you’ve been on the road 18 days, and a snow storm reported to be headed To hit Iowa on Monday night. You know I am shocked over how much folks can spin a story with so little information, and even more shocked at how they feel justified to do so! Let’s let the candidates set their own campaigns and schedules, shall we? This is like the childish game of hearing one thing whispered into your ear, then repeated using your own filters and by the time this happens a few times, it no longer sounds like the original statement. People are so easily tricked based on their biases.

      1. Amen ma’am!

        I too find it shocking. I am doubly shocked that it happens to Dr. Carson, pretty much the only one of both sets of politicos to not come out attacking his rivals.

        I would council him to say fork it and go home and enjoy his golden years. They are well deserved.

        But I cannot as I feel we desperately need a man like Dr. Carson at the helm before we go completely over the falls.

        1. One who throws mud at one of the other candidates that restated CNN’s story that he was going back to Florida? NO ONE said he was quitting. Everyone wonders why he would go home and not go on the campaign trail. There are clothes stores and cleaners. So everyone wonders why? Carson turns his wrath on Cruz because he won and not Rubio or Paul who also tweeted that Carson was going home. Cruz was honorable in apologizing for it. If you’ve ever been to a caucus you get together with YOUR precinct to discuss who you believe should be the Republican nominee. In my state you don’t register to a party so you can go to ONE caucus. Four years ago the democrats had their candidate so they could go to a Republican caucus and vote for the weakest candidate. The discussion is not private. This is not an election. Carson’s people in the precincts have every opportunity to say that he is not quitting and convince people to vote for him. Christians are supposed to forgive even if the other person doesn’t apologize. Cruz was honorable and did apologize. I feel for Ben Carson. He has not caught fire. I’ve been there in the past when my candidate didn’t catch fire and a moderate won the vote. Four years ago the Romney people had the votes to get mostly all his delegates to state. At that time I was for Santorum. Eight years ago I was for Huckabee. Never will I be for Huckabee any mmore after he sucks up to Trumper-tantrum.

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