From
FaceBook
Tonight, going through all of your questions, I wanted to touch on a few issues that seem to be asked by many people.
I would like to deal with one question tonight in some detail. The
issue is experience. Several people ask what they should tell their
friends when people say “I like Carson but he has no political
experience”.
You are absolutely right — I have no political
experience. The current Members of Congress have a combined 8,700 years
of political experience. Are we sure political experience is what we
need. Every signer of the Declaration of Independence had no elected
office experience. What they had was a deep belief that freedom is a
gift from God. They had a determination to rise up against a tyrannical
King. They were willing to risk all they had, even their lives, to be
free. Today we find ourselves with an entire class of politicians. No
one in Philadelphia, during that summer our nation was born, dreamed
that service was a career with a pension. America was the land of the
Citizen Statesmen. They were merchants, lawyers, farmers — and yes,
even doctors. They were willing to stand for freedom. Today, the
political class stands in the way, not for the people. They demand
pensions and perks. This is not what our Founders envisioned for
America. I spent my life treating very ill children. Over 15,000 times
I gave my all to prolong their lives. I was blessed to do it. But
when it came time for me to retire, I simply could not sit back any
longer. These children became my family. What our government is doing
to them is outrageous. I am prepared to risk all that I have to try and
make a difference in their future. I built one of the nation’s best
medical centers. I served for two decades on the boards of Costco and
Kellogg. I built a national scholarship program.
My experience
is very different than what we have come to expect. I grew up poor. I
know what it is like to be homeless and hungry. I know the pain of
poverty. I also know that education and a mother’s love can be the path
out of dire poverty. I know what it is like to see water fountains you
are not allowed to drink out of because of your skin color. I also
know that once you peel back the skin, the brain is the same no matter
what your skin color or continent you live on. I know that victimhood
is a trap. I know that it is our Christian responsibility to offer
those less fortunate a hand up. I know my faith is strong and my ego is
small.
I know that my path to the White House is different than
most. But I also know I bring all of the pain and joy, the success and
failure, the lessons learned through love and sorrow in my life’s
journey. Bill Clinton was famous for saying “I feel your pain” — well, I
have walked in your shoes.
I do not have political experience, I
have a life journey. A journey that not only made it possible for me
to relate to so many different people, but also one where time and time
again I was told I would fail, only to succeed. My candidacy is
different, that I grant you. I have neither Donald Trump’s money or Jeb
Bush’s political network. However, I wouldn't trade a single child I
treated for all of Trump’s money. While I admire the Bush family’s
dedication to service, I too served — nights, weekends, holidays,
birthdays and anniversaries with severely injured patients were my
public service.
I didn’t go to embassy cocktail parties or beg
lobbyists for money. I spent night after night in a quiet, sterile room
trying to save the life of a small child. That was my life’s service.
This is my life’s experience. What I have is a lifetime of caring,
integrity and honesty. I have experienced the American Dream. No where
in the world, other than America, could a man whose ancestors were
slaves, rise to become a leading brain surgeon and one day seek the
Office of President.
The very fact that I am running is testament
to the greatness of America. If all you want is political experience
then I cannot be your candidate.
Thank you for staying up with me.
Goodnight,
Ben
