Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson responded to fellow Republican candidate for president Donald Trump's recent comments about Arizona Sen. John McCain Tuesday, saying the negative backlash Trump has received is "petty."
According to the Washington Post, Carson talked about the Trump-McCain saga with a group of young Republicans in Arlington, Va.
"For us to get caught up in a controversy of well, 'What did Donald Trump mean when he said that?' — It just seems so petty to me," Carson said.
Over the weekend, Trump told a group of voters in Iowa he
questions McCain's status as a war hero. McCain spent more than five years in a Vietnamese POW camp during the Vietnam War.
"He's not a war hero," Trump said Saturday at the Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa. "He's a war hero because he was captured? I like people who weren't captured. ... Perhaps he is a war hero, but right now, he said some very bad things about a lot of people."
According to a Politico report, Trump clarified his comments during a chat with the media on Saturday.
"If somebody's a prisoner, I consider them a war hero," Trump said. "I think John McCain's done very little for the veterans. I'm very disappointed in John McCain."
Trump's comments have drawn a firestorm of criticism, with many people —
including some of his fellow candidates for president — calling for him to exit the race.
Carson said the negative reactions are not necessarily warranted.
"I'm not sure from listening to what he said that he thinks that Mr. McCain is not a hero," Carson said. "He has repeatedly said yes, he is a hero, so I don't know where that comes from that he's disqualified."
Carson spoke at the Family Leadership Summit after Trump and said, regarding McCain's war hero status, "It depends on your definition of a war hero."
On Tuesday, Carson changed his tune and said McCain was "absolutely" a war hero, according to the Post report.
Trump has injected his straight-talking style into the campaign, to the disapproval of many critics. He drew criticism after
making remarks about Mexicans during his campaign announcement speech in April, but his poll numbers are strong.
The latest
Monmouth University poll released Monday showed Trump, with 13 percent, is second in Iowa behind Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker at 22 percent.
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