Dr. Carson: 'An Uneducated Populace Will Fall For Anything' Including 'Pundits On TV'

February 11th, 2013 8:56 PM

"If you go and you talk to most people, they mean well but they don't have much of a breadth of education, of knowledge, of understanding what the real issues are, and therefore they listen to pundits on television who tell them what they're supposed to think, and they keep repeating that and pretty soon they say, 'Oh, that must be true.'”

So marvelously said Dr. Benjamin Carson - the neurosurgeon who blasted onto the political scene last week with an extraordinary speech at the national prayer breakfast - on Fox News's Your World Monday (video follows with transcript and absolutely no need for additional commentary):

NEIL CAVUTO, HOST: Obviously you got quite a round of applause there. Some in that room and elsewhere since this video has gone viral, who have said, “You should run for president.” What did you think of that?

DOCTOR BENJAMIN CARSON: Well, actually, I've had people telling me that for many years now. If I had a nickel for everybody who told me that I could finance my campaign.

CAVUTO: You and me both, you and me both. But I settle on superhero. But your reaction to that is what? I mean, you don't think that's for you? You want to be a doctor, help people, what?

CARSON: I've always said if God grabs me by the collar and sticks me in that arena, that's the only way that I'll do it. But, no, I’m actually going to retire in June from surgery. I will still teach, I will still be involved, but I'm going to retire from surgery. So it does open up a lot of possibilities for me.

You know, I'm very focused on education and getting the populace back to where it used to be like back in 1831 when Alexis de Tocqueville came here and was so impressed, because an uneducated populace will fall for anything. And if you go and you talk to most people, they mean well but they don't have much of a breadth of education, of knowledge, of understanding what the real issues are, and therefore they listen to pundits on television who tell them what they're supposed to think, and they keep repeating that and pretty soon they say, “Oh, that must be true.”

CAVUTO: I assume sometimes you're talking about other pundits doctor, but yes, I hear what you're saying.

(HT Mediaite)