Free Republic

Ben Carson got himself into some trouble a couple of weeks back for remarks concerning homosexuality that he made during an exchange with CNN’s Chris Cuomo. However, I’m not sure what exactly it is that Carson said that ignited such controversy—or any controversy. Carson expressed his position that homosexuality—presumably, homosexual desire, not just conduct—is the product of choice. To substantiate his thesis, Carson alluded to the phenomenon of (ostensibly) heterosexual prisoners who, upon engaging in homosexual relations while incarcerated, “become” gay. Cuomo agreed that such a phenomenon occurs. But—for reasons that he failed to specify—Cuomo disagreed that this example vindicates...

While taking a good deal of criticism for his seeming lack of knowledge on foreign policy this week, Republican Ben Carson told Bloomberg Politics that he is in process of taking in a great deal of information in that regard. In a statement to Bloomberg Politics, Carson acknowledged that he was constantly boning up on foreign policy. “Although I have visited the Baltic Rim and over 57 other countries around the world,” he said, “I am still in the stage of rapidly learning about the political dynamics of global politics.” -snip- He also took the time to offer up something...

Thank God for Hugh Hewitt. Despite an abiding respect for Dr. Ben Carson’s vision, intellect, and accomplishments, many conservatives began to wonder whether he was prepared to mount a presidential bid when his artless comments about the nature of homosexuality inspired a news cycle dedicated to the complexities of sexual relationships in prison. Needless to say, this was intellectual energy that could have been better spent. If conservatives had doubts about Carson’s readiness to run for the presidency, they were confirmed on Wednesday when the “Hewitt Primary” claimed its first scalp. In an extended interview in which Hewitt grilled Carson...

Although homosexuality in America is today synonymous with the word gay, only anger and hostility result from questions about what actually defines it. Dr. Ben Carson stoked these flames last week while defending his position on traditional marriage. By now, most of us have heard Dr. Carson suggested homosexuality in prison proves that being a homosexual comes down to choice, not genetics. Throughout history, the tolerance of any sexual practice has hinged on individual cultures. Dr. Carson’s uncomfortably honest assertion about prison certainly relates to this fact. Sex in prison is often coerced or worse, but that reality doesn’t explain...

Last week, Dr. Ben Carson stepped onto a political mine -- really, jumped onto it with both feet -- when he answered a question from CNN's Chris Cuomo about the nature of homosexuality. "You think being gay is a choice?" Cuomo asked Carson, after Carson rightly stated that being black and being gay are two very different phenomena. "Absolutely," replied Carson. He then went on to explain, "A lot of people who go into prison straight go into prison straight -- and when they come out, they're gay." Carson's unstated line of reasoning is perfectly logical. When Cuomo asked Carson...

This morning on CNN Ben Carson was asked if homosexuality is a choice and he didn’t shy away from answering it, saying he absolutely believes it is a choice. When asked why, he suggested that one example of this being a choice is that some people who go into prison straight and come out gay. If it’s not a choice then how could that happen? Watch: Video Link As I said, heads are exploding over his comments. If you just search Google News you’ll find dozens of articles already written on it. And most of them are negative, as you...

Although homosexuality in America is today synonymous with the word gay, only anger and hostility result from questions about what actually defines it. Dr. Ben Carson stoked these flames last week while defending his position on traditional marriage. By now, most of us have heard Dr. Carson suggest that homosexuality in prison proves that being a homosexual comes down to choice, not genetics. Throughout history, the tolerance of any sexual practice has hinged on individual cultures. Dr. Carson’s uncomfortably honest assertion about prison certainly relates to this fact. Sex in prison is often coerced or worse, but that reality doesn’t...

Conservative media personality Glenn Beck declared renowned neurosurgeon and potential 2016 GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson's presidential career over and branded him a "lunatic" last week for calling homosexuality "absolutely" a choice because of prison sex. Carson told CNN last Wednesday that he believed homosexuality is "absolutely" a choice citing as an example that "a lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight — and when they come out, they're gay…So, did something happen while they were in there?" Reacting to Carson's comments, on his radio show Friday, Beck called them "ridiculous". "Goodbye to his presidential career,"...

A new survey of conservative activists shows many in the movement see Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker as the strongest Republican to take on Hillary Clinton in 2016. The survey wasn't scientific. But conservative activist group ForAmerica surveyed almost 10,000 of its Facebook members and more than 32 percent said Walker has the "best shot at beating Hillary Clinton" in the field, according to results shared first with National Journal. Ben Carson, a neurosurgeon who has never held elected office, finished in second, with nearly 25 percent of the vote. Sen. Ted Cruz (14 percent), Sen. Rand Paul (6.6 percent) and...

According to Glenn Beck, possible GOP candidate Dr. Ben Carson‘s comments about homosexuality being a choice is one of the dumbest things the radio host has ever heard ... “Goodbye to his presidential career,” Beck said Friday on his radio show. “It’s over. It’s over. There is no way to recover from that. That just sounds like a lunatic… That is just a ridiculous statement on a million fronts. A ridiculous statement.” ...

A question I often am asked is: "Who would you bet on to win the presidency?" Personally, I don't bet on politics, but here's my current take on the 2016 presidential race—with, of course, the caveat that we don't know which campaigns will turn out the best in terms of organization, strategy, tactics, or execution, much less which candidates will step on land mines along the way. The Democratic nomination appears fairly straightforward. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is now the prohibitive favorite. If her early stumbles during her book tour, or remarks like the one she made about...

The headline of a recent Washington Post article was provocative, as it was meant to be: “I’m gay. And I want my kid to be gay too.” Writer, CNN political commentator and ardent feminist Sally Kohn set off a national firestorm of criticism with her admission that she would prefer that her daughter be gay like her than heterosexual, because she thinks being lesbian is a “an asset and a gift.” So far Kohn’s six-year-old daughter shows no signs of following in her mother’s footsteps, in spite of a household filled with gay-themed books and admonitions, when she plays “family”...

By Fox News. Potential 2016 presidential candidate Ben Carson apologized Wednesday for saying homosexuality was a lifestyle choice.“I do not pretend to know how every individual came to their sexual orientation,” Carson said on his Facebook page late Wednesday afternoon. “I regret that my words to express that concept were hurtful and divisive. For that I apologize unreservedly to all that were offended.” Carson, a neurosurgeon, was attempting to clarify comments he made earlier in the day to Chris Cuomo on CNN’s “New Day” show. “A lot of people who go into prison go into prison straight — and...

Ben Carson, the retired neurosurgeon and potential Republican presidential candidate, said Wednesday that “a lot of people who go into prison straight, and when they come out they’re gay.” The remarks were made on CNN’s “New Day” in response to a question from host Chris Cuomo, who asked if Carson thought being gay was a “choice.” “Absolutely,” Carson replied. Asked why, he went on to explain his prison theory. “So did something happen while they were in there?” he said. “Ask yourself that question.”

Gregory T. Angelo, Meghan McCain and Fred Karger signing the St. Louis Resolution Tuesday night. In a move designed to head off anti-gay rhetoric during the 2016 Republican presidential campaign, three prominent GOP leaders signed a resolution Tuesday and will send it off to the 18 prospective Republican candidates for president. After speaking on a panel entitled “Marriage Equality and the Republican Party” in Graham Chapel at Washington University, political columnist and television host Meghan McCain, Log Cabin Republican Executive Director, Gregory T. Angelo and the first openly gay candidate to run for President, Fred Karger, all signed the Resolution,...

Ben Carson, a retired neurosurgeon and presidential hopeful, recently apologized for a statement in which he said being gay is "absolutely" a choice. In an interview on CNN, the potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate commented that "a lot of people who go into prison, go into prison straight, and when they come out they're gay, so did something happen while they were in there? Ask yourself that question."

You might think Ben Carson’s recent comments suggesting that prison turns people gay have hurt his presidential campaign. I don’t buy it. In fact, I suspect they’ll improve his chances. First, Carson’s supporters agree with what he said. According to a March 2014 Washington Post poll, 48 percent of conservative Republicans think being gay is something you choose while only 39 percent disagree. If you polled the activists on the Christian-right most likely to back Carson’s campaign, that figure would probably be even more lopsided. Second, it won’t exactly shock Carson’s backers to hear that he’s anti-gay. Last March, Carson...

As Matt Welch noted Wednesday, pediatric neurosurgeon and next Republican president of the United States Ben Carson both "lived down to stereotype" and articulated some truths about the GOP field for 2016 when he argued that gay sex among heterosexuals in prisons proves that being gay is a "choice." (Carson's very existence, by the way, proves my general about Republicans' "long love affair" manifestly unqualified candidates.) Here's something else to think about while mulling over whether any of this matters more than a tinker's ding-dong: Ben Carson has apologized for his comments and is already being taken to the woodshed...

In a Facebook post following his interview with CNN’s “New Day,” Dr. Ben Carson issued a statement, apologizing for saying people who change their sexual orientation after going to jail shows that “being gay is a choice.” […] “I support human rights and Constitutional protections for gay people, and I have done so for many years. I support civil unions for gay couples, and I have done so for many years. I support the right of individual states to sanction gay marriage, and I support the right of individual states to deny gay marriage in their respective jurisdictions,” Carson said....

On Wednesday, perpetually controversial conservative Ben Carson told CNN’s Chris Cuomo that being gay is “absolutely” a choice. I agree, kind of. Last week I wrote an essay for the Washington Post in which I talked about wanting my daughter to be gay—implicitly and explicitly challenging the idea long advanced by gay rights advocates that being gay is not a choice. I’m not saying being gay necessarily is a conscious choice for many queer folks today, but I am saying it should be able to be a choice—and one that is “equally desirable to being straight.” In other words, for...