carson. he was a doctor, perhaps an okay doctor by the way. you can check that out, too. we we are not talking about a great -- he was an okay doctor. >> i don't know about okay doctor. you know, he was the first man to separate conjoined twins. >> because he's a doctor and he hired one nurse he's going to end up being the president of the united states? he shouldn't be questioning my faith because, number one, i'm leading with the evangelicals. i'm protestant, presbyterian. i have great relationships with the people of iowa, with new hampshire, with south carolina and he shouldn't be questioning my faith. you know why? because he knows nothing about me. i met him a couple of times. >> he's known about him for a long time but he knows nothing about me. that's just the beginning of it. keep in mind donald trump and ben carson are leading the republican race for president right now. a brand new cnn poll out just this morning shows that they're the only candidates standing at the moment in doubl

carson. [bell] dr. carson: one of my favorite bible verses. proverbs 22:4. it says, "by humility and the fear of the lord are riches and honor in life." that's a very big part of who i am. humility and the fear of the lord. i don't get that impression with him. maybe i am wrong. i don't get that impression. mr. trump: i never heard faith was a big thing until just recently, so i do not even know about ben carson's faith. all of a sudden, he becomes this great religious figure. i don't think he's a great religious figure. i saw him yesterday quoting something on humility. it looked like he memorized it two minutes before he made the quote. don't tell me about ben carson. john: speaking of the washington post, carson backed off his comments and said he did not want to get into a gladiator fight with trump. probably because trump would destroy him and dragged his corpse on a chariot through the streets of midtown manhattan. that is just one front of the war on trump. on the second front is carly fiorina. it is all about how "rolling stone" quoted the donald. he

carson only -- >> if dr. carson -- let me finish up. if dr. carson because of his love for america, he is willing -- everything is not about winning the white house for him. it's about standing up for what he believes in, telling the truth, even if it makes cnn and others uncomfortable. it is what he believes. >> is dr. carson comfortable with anyone other than a christian being president? >> it is not about christian. it is not about jew. it is not about religion. it is about what one believes and what they will advocate if they become president of these united states. a place that you and i, and i have no doubt about it, love and cherish and wants to protect. and dr. carson is saying what he believes. and he believes it, alisyn, and he will not take it back. >> muslim civil rights groups have called for him to get out of the race. obviously, that's not happening. but will he sit down with muslims today to clarify how he feels about them? >> only, alisyn and others feel needs to be clarified. you don't have to clarify what you believe in. it

carson. thank you for joining us. we are waiting to hear from cair. we know they're going to call on dr. carson to withdrawal from the race. what do you say to cair? >> that's the deity of america. unlike other countries around the world, you don't get to protest your leaders. you don't get to protest things you disagree with. more power to them. let them do what they need to do and we're going to have to do what we need to do. >> armstrong, help us understand because you and the campaign manager suggest the media is twisting ben carson's words here. i want to get a sense of exactly what he is against, exactly what he would not advocate. he said he would not advocate a muslim in the white house. does it go beyond that? does he think muslims should not be part of the judiciary either because judges -- they interpret the constitution. >> you know, article vi of the constitution, like all articles of the constitution, applies only to the government. amendments i through x applies to individual c

carson. in less that 24 hours, pope francis arrived in washington to begin his historic visit to the united states. >>> we begin with breaking news, though, reaction to ben carson's remark that's a muslim should not be president of the united states. donald trump did not condemn what was said, but instead talked about the process of electing people. >> i think that basically if somebody can get elected, you know, they're going to be vetted and if somebody can get elected, that's what it's all about. it's an electoral process. i would tend to go along with that. >> tend to go along with what? >> election. if you win an election, you know, in this country, if you win an election. but i would say this, ben was saying there are difficulties and i think everybody knows what those difficulties are and people want to be politically correct, but there have been difficulties and a lot of people agree with ben. i do think that ben would also agree, though, if properly vetted, the proper people properly

last month, carson was polling 6% and trump isn't impressed by carson's buzz. >> here's the headline. carson surging. i say, what about me, where's my name? i'm at 40. where's my name? it's unbelievable. do you know where my name is? [ cheers and applause ] >> they don't know where my name is either. by the way, can you see in the back, they have the best view? can you see it's really my hair? >> the big numbers, the big apple billionaire businessman refers to come out of new hampshire. while ben carson has caught up nationally, trump is blowing other candidates out of the water in the granite state. and he wants to assure his supporters that a disappearing act is not part of the show. >> now it's time to really start. because this is going to happen. i'm telling you, i'm not going anywhere. >> that means stopping every candidate in his way. carson got his first taste earlier in september. he told reporters the difference between him and trump, i've realized where my success has come from, carson said, and i don't in any way, deny my faith in god. trump scolded carson for questioning

carson would say that. i think the republican doesn't not want to see a black man in office, they just don't want to see a black democrat in office anymore. this seems to be rehashing history unnecessarily. >> in some ways it strikes me, linda, that this has been something that has been under the rug, swement under the rug for a long time. there are a lot of americans out there -- i don't know how many, but maybe a few, but they believe this. just like that guy that got up and spoke at donald trump -- so is it a good thing that this has kind of been uncovered in some ways or not? >> i think that's why donald trump and ben carson are playing an important role. we are 7 to 10 muslim americans in this country. 1.7 billion of us internationally, and we are facing probably the most hostile civic environment, and these two candidates are exposing what america really was created on, based on racism and ideology to be honest with you. >> i listened to the commentary today on television and heard the comments and th

carson said. it's really alarming in this day and age, in any day and age to be honest with you, but particularly in an america that has been through so many changes and has come to appreciate the importance of diversity had a we have somebody who misunderstands the motto of the united states , e plu pluribus unim, out of the many one, out of the few one. >> isn't dr. carson talking about the political reality if not a true reality? isn't in practical terms he right that in 2015 it is unlikely that a muslim could be president? >> i think he went further than that, saying a muslim should not be president of the united states. that runs afoul against the constitution, no religious test for president of the united states. i can't believe how dr. carson or many of the candidates in one major party in the country who seem to think if you are a christian you should assume that god's law is nor important than the utle constitution. united states constitution. that's what mike huckabee has already said an

carson was asked his opinion. his opinion was the timing, at this point, he would not vote for a muslim in the white house. this is why he's not a politician. this is why he's not trying to be politically correct. this is america. it's a place of freedom of speech. >> and freedom of religion. >> you express what you believe and how you feel. >> and freedom of religion. >> it is not an issue of religion to dr. carson. this is an issue of one's belief system, how they will govern. your beliefs, what you in, how you look upon people, how you value people is dictated by what you believe. >> uh-huh. armstrong, led me read to you article 6 of the constitution which says that anyone of any religion can serve in public office. here it is, no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the united states. dr. carson's belief system violates that part of the constitution. >> dr. carson, alisyn, as you're alluding to was not speaking about religion, not at all. his, like most a

carson saying he does not believe a muslim should be president. his remarks now another distraction party. nbc's holly jackson joins us with more. >> good evening, tamron. ben carson's campaign tells me he probably will reach out to members of the muslim community, as tonight there's new fallout from those comments, with one group calling on carson to drop out of this race altogether. from a typically soft-spoken candidate, a response making lots of noise today, after ben carson was asked on "meet the press" whether a president's faith should matter to voters? >> if it fits within the realm of america and consistent with the constitution, i have no problem. >> so you believe that islam is consistent with the constitution? >> no, i don't -- i do not. i would not advocate that we put a muslim in charge of this nation. i absolutely would not agree with that. >> the comments, seizing the spotlight in the republican race. >> the constitution provides that there should be no religious test for public office. and i'm a constitutional. >> reporter: articl

carson's controversy. ben carson is facing calls to abandon his campaign after making shocking anti muslim remarks. can he survive the backlash as he slips in the polls? we'll talk to a top veteran republican operative. >>> putin's big push. a disturbing buildup of weapons and troops inside syria. israel's prime minister warns they could fall into terrorists' hands. is putin adding to middle east instability? >>> isis horror stories, accounts of life with the terrorists and brutality worse than so many imagine. is disillusion growing inside isis ranks? we want to welcome viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer, you're in the "situation room." >> this is cnn breaking news. >> we're following breaking news, a new shakeup in the republican battle for the white house. sources telling cnn scott walker, an early front runner in iowa is now dropping out of the race. we're standing by to hear from him momentarily and hearing calls for dr. ben carson to drop out after he said he wouldn't

carson: thank you. >> thank you, dr. carson for that great talk. we have a few minutes for questions. we have a lot of people who have questions. i want to begin by noting a pullout last night shows you surging. you are currently ahead of governor bush, senator cruz and marco rubio. [applause] >> this is an unusual field. a messy field. not sure what to make of it. between you and carly fiorina and donald trump, people who are not held public office -- what the you make of this? what do you say to people about your electability? dr. carson: i think it means the american people are waking up and they are starting to realize that political experience is not the answer. if you take all the political experience of everybody in congress right now, it comes out to 9000 years. where has it gotten us? what really is important is do you know how to solve problems? are you a problem solver and the you know how to work with other people? one of the things that has become very apparent to me throughout my career and my life in the world of business and sitting

and carson is in it. bush is not in the outsider lane, but he wants to be the reformer who is -- can be different. and that's hard. >> social conservative and that's where carson if you're a huckabee, if you're a ted cruz. >> exactly. >> you have to look at carson and say he is eating up a lot of that social conservative vote so how do we get past him? >> john, you've looked at the numbers a lot in all the various polls we've seen. if dr. carson does start to fade out, doesn't have the organization or people just start to look elsewhere, where are those conservatives who are supporting him now where do they go? do you think they gravitate toward trump? carson and trump are often linked together as outsiders. >> the interesting thing when you look at the polls is that these guys the numbers have gotten higher also gotten wider in the sense of the breadth of it. they're getting women, they're getting men, they're getting ev evangelica evangelicals, tea party, it's not just one well of the republican party w

explain the appeal of ben carson. is the biggest selling point the fact that he is not the traditional politician? >> you know, this ben carson surge is really surprising. the normal way a candidate goes up in the polls is they spend a lot of time in iowa or new hampshire or around the country and getting media attention the way donald trump is doing but carson is not going that. he is going to california. not spendi ining a lot of time the early states. they love the carson personal story, the idea of very poor to being one of the best doctors in the country and through hard work and frames his story. that's the main part of the appeal is that personal narrative. >> he has a very compelling all-american story that a lot of people are inspired by. not donald trump so much, though. he briefly talked about ben carson last night in dallas. take a look. >> i like carly. and i like ben. and i like many of the people that i'm running against. i mean, many of these people are terrific people. but nobody's going to be able to

neurosurgeon ben carson. and hillary clinton's campaign does it need a resnoot we'll talk to president obama's former strategist and we'll have analysis on the political news of the week including joe biden's emotional struggle over his political future. it's all ahead on "face the nation." captioning sponsored by cbs good morning welcome to "face the nation" i'm john dickerson. labor day is behind us, football season started the second republican debate just three days away. so we have some brand new poll numbers this morning from our cbs news 2016 battleground tracker, we'll be tracking the candidates in the early primary states throughout the next few months. first the republican field in iowa. donald trump is at the top with 29% of likely g.o.p. voters. ben carson is not far behind at 25%. there's the rest of the pack, all 14 of them. ted cruz has 10% support remaining candidates trail behind in single digits. in new hampshire, donald trump is way out in front with 40% of the vote. ben carson follows with

carson who says that dr. carson would be happy to meet with any number of muslim american organizations for what they're calling a civil dialogue and reaching out in the next couple of days to try to schedule something to see who can be set up and when. the council on american islamic relations saying they'll ask him to have the dialogue and the campaign says it should not be characterized as a parkwn apolo saying that he does not believe there's a separation of church and state in islam. muslim american leaders say that's just wrong. listen. >> katy tur, you've been moll following them. we wouldn't be having this conversation except for last week. >> that's what we're seeing. all of the candidates defining themselves off of what donald trump has or has not done and something he did not say and seeing first time trump is not the headline maker today. it is carson the headline maker and came out with the even more extreme comment and not necessarily a bad thing when you're talking to the trump campaign. they'r

carson is black? >> dr. carson's appeal is that he, as american as apple pie and chevrolet and football and baseball. he's as american as serena williams who we hope to catch her slam. dr. carson relates to the american people. you cannot put him in a box. yes, he understands racism because he grew up in poverty. he grew up with discrimination. he was often mistaken as an orderly at john hopkins. >> she is not defined by race. he is defined by the rise out of poverty, embracing the american dream like many who came here. hardwork, discipline, faith in god and sacrifice. that's what we are. that's who dr. carson is. >> armstrong, you are working hard this vacation week. great to see you. don't forget you can watch ben carson and more than a dozen other presidential contenders debate at the cnn gop debate at the reagan library september 16th. coverage at 6:00 p.m. eastern on cnn. >> a busy night for reporters. the state department released 7,000 pages stuff. some of it was classified. how will this affect the

ben carson has moved closer than ever to trump. trump at 27%, carson behind him at 23%. it's all on the lean tomorrow night. let's get right to it. sarah murray is at the uss iowa for us tonight. a very high profile event on the eve of this debate, how did it go for donald trump? >> reporter: you know, donald trump was definitely rallying the crowd here on the uss iowa. there was a little awkwardness a few hundred feet away. there were some vocal protesters saying donald trump is a racist. can you hear that aboard the ship. a stark contrast. this is more than a national security speech. we did not hear a lot of specification. the crowd liked how he would reform the va. he had a strong military if he were president he talked a lot about immigration, which a number of people do view as a security issue f. you board that ship and you walked away with a very favorable impression even though it was light on specifics. >> reporter: sarah, what can you tell about the event? it's a joint campaign and fundraiser for a vets group, right? one vet group? >> reporter: yeah, the vote

i hardly know ben carson. when he questions my faith, and i'm a believer, big league in god and the bible, and he questions my faith and he doesn't know me? and you say i'm not supposed to hit back. i will hit back on that. >> no, i don't say you're not supposed to hit back. >> he doesn't understand me. first of all, they know i'm going to run the country properly and won't let everybody rip us off and take our money. and that's very important to the evangelical. they are very smart people. and also know i'm a man of faith. i don't want ben carson criticizing my faith. certainly when he doesn't know me he can't do that. >> i understand that and that's a legitimate position to have. i think the carly fiorina situation is something to happen in a different way. i don't get the personna reference. i think that's more about her face. you have to figure out how to put yourself out to the voters. let me ask you about issues very relevant to you if you're president of the united states. the kentucky clerk situation.

don't tell me about ben carson. >> but ben carson is coming at you too. he says -- >> he's starting to hit me so i hit back. i only hit back when i get hit. a big counter puncher. ben carson, you're talking about his faith, excuse me, chris, go back to look at his past. go back to look at his views on abortion and see where he stands. talk about abortion, go back to look at his views on abortion. now all of a sudden he gets on very low key, frankly he looks like he makes bush look like the energizer bunny. he's very low key. >> strong words. >> he's got a lot of people pushing him. but ben carson, you look at his faith and i think you're not going to find so much. and you look at his views on abortion, which were horrendous. and that's, i think, why i'm leading with all the evangelicals. as you know in your poll, number one, i'm leading ben carson by a lot. you say, oh, ben carson is surging. well, i'm almost double his numbers. >> absolutely. i'm saying he came out of nowhere is all i'm saying. he's not a big celebrity. people didn't know about him. he d

carson: cut all the pork. no. when i would do is i would call in every departmental director and i would say you need to cut 2% to 3% out of your budget over this next year. if you cannot do it, turning your resignation now because you will be fired. the fact of the matter is i guarantee you there are two's 2-3% fat in a recent budget. at least that. the next year i would say you did a good job, let's do it again. do that three or four years in a row and you have substantial reduction along with the hiring freeze that i mentioned earlier. along with applying things like lean six sigma and along with bringing in experts on efficiency. i think that would do it. >> the number one driver of our debt are entitlements which raises important questions. social security, things that people depend on. we have a lot of people, younger people watching this. what are you going to do about those things and their future? dr. carson: let me address one of them because we can talk about all of them all day long -- social security.

and retired neurosurgeon ben carson is actually surging in the polls no. wonder, our last loveable black doctor is no longer available. that's right, mother (bleep)er, i haven't forgotten about you. in is the nightly show. let's do this! captioning sponsored by comedy central >> thank you very much. thank you very much. welcome to the nightly show. man, such a great audience. normally you come to the show, people say, man, i hope i get -- listen, the audience i have a black lives matter bracelet, which is very nice. [ cheers and applause ] >> wilmore: and it is very nice looking white gentleman a and said, yo larry, it is like, whoa. black lives matter. i am like, all right. but, you know, that's exactly what he sounded hike. he asked if i would wear the bracelet and said he was over and colbert and gave him one too. my question is, does this guy have a job? white jobs matter too, you know? i am just saying. i am just saying. [ cheers and applause ] >> wilmore: if a man wants to get out -- no. very nice, very nice. i appreciate it. oh, tonight was the seco

>> i support ben carson just like donald trump. ben carson was very clear. his problem is with sharia law and he said clearly to the hill, if the muslim candidate disavowed sharia law, they can be a candidate. the european human rights council said it's destructive to democracy. >> harris, i want to make sure i get you in. let me press you on. you mentioned article vi a minute ago. for those keeping score and who aren't a as familiar provides that no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification under the united states. the first amendment of the constitution that congress shall pass no law establishing religion. our constitution was developed to protect us, to prevent threat or thinking like this. so would you argue our founding fathers were wrong? >> i think ben carson is saying it's consistent with article vi. he said i would not advocate. this is his personal belief he would not advocate for a a muslim president. so that's consistent with not drop developing a test for president of the united states. >> harris, let me get what you make of this

carson's a pole? >> we have claudia in san francisco where ben carson will speak. >> reporter: that's right, dr. ben carson riding a wave of momentum as he brings his soft spoken style the west coast. the pioneering neursurgeon is set to speak in the common wealth club in san francisco and will take questions after. dr. carson who is absent from the spotlight in the past week will talk about a flat tax and his opposition to the iran deal and why he is be the country's next president. the retired doctor came in the last month's gop debate unknown and climb negligent polls every since and carson is in third place in new hampshire and second place in iowa behind front runner donald trump. voters are looking for something new but there may be a down side. >> being a neursurgeon you may not have had the experience running an organization and experience dealing with the press and dealing with going to the rough and tumble of politics. >> carson could be challenged on two of his views that conflict with the

ben carson did that. it will be interesting to see who else does it tonight. >> genevieve, a question specifically to you real fast. jeb bush, can he survive a poor performance at tonight's debate? >> a poor performance, it depends on how poor it is. i mean, look. well, jeb bush has a lot of money. and he's got a big name and a lot of backers. and so he can stay in longer and continue fighting more than, like, a rick perry did who just recently dropped out. i think it will be easier for him to not have a great performance tonight and still remain relevant here. if he has a really bad performance, i don't think anybody's going to be able to stand up to that. >> genevieve wood and ruth conniff, thanks for joining us. >>> california's lieutenant governor delivers a message to donald trump on immigration. and the candidates at the kids' table debate aren't the only ones risking irrelevance. find out which candidates have the most to lose. they are the natural born enemy of the way things are. yes, ideas are s

ben carson is not original. he's copying what we heard in 19606. >> isn't it interesting we find ourselves back here having this conversation again. >> and the pope is here it's interesting. >> makes you wonder where we'll be 30, 40 years ago. >> we'll look back on comments and loom back in embarrassment and shame that some people accepted those views, just like we look back at anti-semitism, catholicism be et cetera. >> growth hurts on the way. we know that thanks for being a part of it and being part of the conversation. you can get in on the conversation with us, get a jump on twitter, use #newdaycnn or facebook. >>> sara jane moore fired a bullet at then president gerald ford trying to assassinate him. thankfully, she missed. moore is speaking out about that day and what she wants now. become the only thing you think about. that's where at&t can help. at at&t we monitor our network traffic so we can see things others can't. mitigating risks across your business. leaving you free to focus on what matters most

ben carson said he would not advocate a muslim in the white house. the comment has drawn quick rebuke from many of the candidates and even calls for him to get out of the race. e have the latest. reporter: ben carson, christian conservative, one of the main challengers to the republican nomination has given himself and his party a mighty head wake with these comments. >> i would not advocate we put a muslim in charge of this nation. i absolutely would not agree with that. >> his political rivals have pounced. >> our constitution specifies there should be no religious test for office. >> others took too to twitter. senator graham saying, carson needs to apologize to american muslims. he is a good doctor but not prepared to lead a great nation. this comes hot on the heels ininvolving donald trump when he didn't correct this questioner at a town hall meeting last week. >> the problem in this country is called muslims. we know our current president is one. you know he isn't an an american. >> article 6 of the u.s. constitution is explicit, no religious t

ben carson at 15% which means donald trump is almost doubling ben carson's level of support. still, though, those are the only two people in double digits. those are the two guys coming in first and second. this new national poll from ppp obviously very good news for both donald trump and ben carson. this new national ppp poll actually means that donald trump and ben carson are the number one and number two choices of republicans nationwide in three of the last four national polls. that top tier is really getting to be very clear. donald trump and ben carson clearly sitting on top of the republican field as we head toward labor day and this new ppp poll just underscoring their dominance. this poll also has relatively good news, though, for jeb bush. jeb bush, he does only place third in this new ppp poll, and he can't get out of single digits but, still, 9% and coming in third, constitutes really good news for jeb bush right now the way things have been going for him recently. he's not only been sliding nationally but in the early states so jeb bush coming in third tonight in

i am really disappointed by the decision that ben carson madeti. to say my faith is bigger than yours. it doesn't play right. and here's the thing. i think, september is going to be a huge month for christian voters to decide which candidate they may back. they have the fight over iranian deal, planned parenthood, marriage. it is happening, the candidate other than engaging on the three, use is an enormous mistake. >> i want to play what dr. carson said, the second part when he was following up his initial remark. >> -- by humility and the fear of the lord. our riches, our honor, our life. that's a very big part of who i am. humility and the fear of the lord. i don't get that impression with him. maybe i am wrong. i've don't get that impression. rick you, have been a vocal critic of donald trump all along. what do you thing of carson's remarks. rick perry tried this a while ago. in much harsher language. a frontal assault. and didn't have the impact he wanted. this draws out something about the possession of the two men as the outsider, primary out

hammering carson over his faith and his medical qualifications. >> i've known ben carson for a long time. i never heard faith was a big thing until just recently when he started running. i don't know about ben carson's faith and all of the sudden he becomes this great religious figure. i don't think he's a great religious figure. i saw him quoting something, quoting on humility and it looked like he just memorized it about two minute before he said the quote. don't tell me about ben carson. he's starting to hit me so i hit back. i only hit back when i get hit. i'm a great counter puncher. excuse me chris. go back and look at his past. go back and look at his views on abortion and see where he stands. you talk about abortion. go back and look at his views on abortion. now all of the sudden he gets on very low key, i mean frankly he makes bush look like the energizer bunny. he's very low key. >> strong words. >> who is he to question my faith when i am -- you know he doesn't know me. i've met him a few times. i don't know ben carson. he was a doctor perhaps an okay doctor by the way. you c

ben carson, what does he do? >> once they get face to face, are they really going to mix it up as much as they have been doing long distance. carly fiorina issued a statement on the stage and say what's wrong with this it face? what a moment that would be. but there are some substantiative u differences. ben carson has been talking about his faith and questioning donald trump's faith. there's so much that's happened since the last debate. when they are next to each other, the dynamic is so different. >> does he have a big vulnerability, jeff? >> does donald trump have a big vulnerability? the expectations continue o to rise for donald trump. he's continuing to dominate the republican polls. he and ben carson together have more than half the republican vote in this abc poll. i think the stakes get higher and higher for donald trump. we're still waiting to see the evolution of his candidacy. is he going to put more policies out. this is a new phase of the campaign. i don't think it's enough to act like he was at th

so ben carson good guy, 11 or 12, carson, here is the headline, carson surging. i said what about me? where is my name? i'm at 40. where is my name? it's unbelievable. when a politician all talk, no action, politician runs, what do they give up? nothing. they run they run, they lose, they win, they don't care. all they want to do is be reelected or run again if they fail, right? with me, it's a whole big deal. it's a whole big deal and you know, i'm self-funding my campaign. i'm not taking all of this blood hundr money. i'm not doing it. if i don't win, it's a total waste of time and i like many of the people that i'm running against, i mean, many of these people are terrific people. but nobody is going to do the job i'm going to be able to do. i have tremendous energy, it's ridiculous when you think about it. i was the ultimate insider. i put up money. they loved me. and i just saw back stage some of the families who were decimated, their families were decimated their sons, daughters killed by illegal immigrants. many of these gang members are illegal immigrants

carson said he would not support a muslim for president. listen. >> so do you believe that islam is consistent with the constitution? >> no, i don't. i do not. i would not advocate that we put a muslim in charge of this nation. i absolutely would not agree with that. >> chief washington correspondent james rosen in washington with us with the latest. james? >> good evening. it's not hurting us, that's for sure, ben carson's campaign manager is quoted as saying today. he cites a surgeon fund-raising and 100,000 new facebook friends all since dr. carson made those controversial comments on "meet the press." and the candidate himself as you note is doubling down, telling the hill newspaper that the next commander in chief should be "sworn in on a stack of bibles, not a koran." muslims feel that your religion is part of your public life and that's inconsistent with our principles and constitution, carson said. add -- >> the head of the council on american islamic relations says his group was shocked that such views came from a current candidate

carson leading by 9%. the mild-mannered candidate surprising some by taking a jab at the gop frontrunner wednesday. going after trump's faith. >> by humility and the fear of the the lord are riches and honor and life. and that's a very big part of who i am. i don't get that impression with him. maybe i'm wrong. >> reporter: to which trump shot back on twitter. wow, i am ahead of the field we van gel calls and virtually every other group. and ben carson just took a swipe at me. but carson didn't stop there talking about trump's immigration policy but not mentioning him by name. >> if anybody can show me how you can actually round up these people who aren't necessarily going to be cooperative and how that's not going to jam up the court system and cost enormous amounts of money, i'm perfectly happy to listen. >> reporter: trump sticking it to carson, too. >> he doesn't understand it and he's wrong. >> reporter: as carson makes gains on trump, a controversial new profile for the billionaire hits newsstands in

carson needs to be carson. >> and he's going to bide by that tonight. carson needs to be carson. i also asked him what he prepares in terms of standing next to donald trump. and he says he's going to treat donald trump like everyone else on the stage and he expects donald trump to return the favor. in terms of a pre-game for ben carson, he said he played a little pool, he got a haircut and went to see his dentist, wolf. >> all right. that's interesting what he did today. kate, thanks very, very much. let's get some more with our political commentators who are joining me, the republican strategist kevin ben, ana navarro along with s.c. cupp. ana, what is an insider -- that's what he is, jeb bush, former florida governor, need to do against the ultimate outsider, namely donald trump? >> the first thing he needs to do and they all need to do is jeb needs to be jeb. marco needs to be marco. carson is right. carson needs to be carson. i'm very glad his teeth are not going to be aching. any pain he may be feeling may

carson? it's a very, very tough opponent. >> trump said he's only an okay doctor. >> listen, your best sound bite against somebody who calls you a godless heathen is you're an okay doctor? that shows me weakness on the part of trump. i don't think trump knows how to fight this guy. i think this is an opportunity for dr. carson to do something. you know, you don't expect it, but it could happen. >> just one more reason, david, why this debate is so key and so exciting. we don't know which trump we'll see or ben carson or carly fiorina or the others. all right, do not forget, you can see all the drama here unfold at the reagan library. the cnn debate is wednesday night at 6:00 p.m., and then 8:00 p.m. eastern time, two back-to-back debates. do not miss either one. fred. >> we won't miss them. thanks so much, john. >>> kentucky county clerk kim davis goes back to work tomorrow. coming up, i ask her attorney, will she continue to refuse issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples? or has she fo

. >> that's right, ben "obscurity" carson is in second place in the polls. you know, this is very upsetting you guys. no, no. not just because carson said obamacare is the boston thing that happened since slavery. no, no, no, no. or because carson thinks that after taking an ap history course most americans would be ready to join isis. no. nope, nope, nope. this is upsetting because, because i might have to change my unblackening graphic. >> all right. roll the new test graphic he in case we have another black president. >> wilmore: wow! [ cheers and applause ] >> wilmore: wow. those white people are really scared. you would think the blob was coming or something. are you ready for the re-blackening, america? i mean, really ready? now to be honest, i have been ignoring car son because i just thought he was her main cain 2 going 0. just another bespectacled black man from bidness who seemed to come out of nowhere when actually they were both created in a secret lab where all black republicans are made. true. i am not making this up. that's why i didn't take h

ben carson who is clearly a man of faith and it is ridiculous for donald trump to question ben carson's faithful this is someone whose life was saved by god. and he has testified very movingly and powerfully about that for years. someone who nearly stabbed another kid to death, had his horrible fits of temper that he couldn't control. what did he do? he got on his knees and did he what drurp apparently never does a few weeks ago, he asked for god's forgiveness, he asked for god's redemption and mercy. that will resonate with voters. >> if you're looking for humble, donald is not your guy. if you're looking for strong -- i can't think of two demetrical opposed than these two guys. and there are things i like about both. >> let's look at what they have in common. they're both outsiders with over 50% of the vote combined. i think the planned parenthood debacle illustrates why people are going for outsiders. i mean, look. planned parenthood has no better friend than the democrat party. it is also true, they have been in the federal budget since 1970. meaning for the last decades, they have