Syrian refugees in a camp he visited this weekend in Jordan tell him they prefer to stay where they are until they can return to their home country and don't want to come to the United States, GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson said during three Sunday morning news show appearances.
The living facilities in Jordan are "very satisfactory," Carson said on
"Meet the Press," adding that refugees there urged America to support those facilities to a greater degree.
"They said United States and other nations could be supportive of the Herculean effort manifested by the Jordanians in taking in people, at a lot of expense to themselves," Carson said on ABC's
"This Week." "They cannot continue that without the help of the international community."
Carson said the $3 million Americans just spent on Halloween candy would bridge the shortfall.
On
"Face the Nation," Carson said Jordan should accept more refugees, as should other neighboring Arab countries since that would not only be less of a cultural change for them, but would also have them closer to Syria when they are able to eventually return home.
"Is that going to be easier from a neighboring country or is that going to be easier from the United States of America?" he said on "This Week."
"Meet the Press" moderator Chuck Todd asked Carson if he regrets using an analogy of a rabid dog when talking about keeping Syrians out of the country for fear terrorists could be among them.
Carson responded that the Syrians he talked to understood what he was saying better than his critics in the press did.
"It's only the news media and our country that thinks you're calling Syrians dogs," Carson said. "They understand here that we're talking about the jihadists, the Islamic terrorists. … So maybe they can teach us a little bit about how to interpret language."
Carson was also asked about the shooting Friday at a Colorado Planned Parenthood facility that left three dead. Planned Parenthood has blamed heated rhetoric against its organization in recently released undercover videos for sparking the suspect to action.
Carson said there is too much extreme rhetoric from all sides of the debate, and on other issues as well.
"It's one of the biggest areas that's threatening to tear our country apart," he told "This Week." "We get into our separate corners and we hate each other and we want to destroy those who we disagree. That comes from both sides. There's no saint here in this equation."
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