WEST DES MOINES, Iowa — While campaigning in Iowa, GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson met with a group of black church leaders in West Des Moines to discuss the economic and social state of America. Carson told the group what he believes must be done to stop the increasing government spending and power being taken away from the people by politicians in Washington, D.C.
“I was advised that Dr. Carson requested the meeting be added to his schedule when his schedule opened up,” said Rita Davenport, a counselor at the Des Moines Area Community College, who organized the private meeting. “I know that Dr. Carson has met with African-American church leaders in other cities like Waterloo. I understand that Dr. Carson really enjoys that and wants to hear from and dialogue with the people who are in leadership positions within the black community.”
Davenport has been a volunteer with the Iowa GOP for years and has experience working with and meeting several presidential candidates.
“I always caucus and have volunteered on state campaigns and with some presidential campaigns in the past. This time, I have been volunteering for Dr. Carson and doing everything I can to promote him and his candidacy because I believe he truly has the God-given talent and abilities to fix this country,” Davenport explained to Breitbart News. “He is a very wise man and he wants this nation to be great again. Dr. Carson is a compassionate conservative who knows that acknowledging everyone’s intrinsic value as part of society and when we all contribute to the strength of our nation it will make us stronger and unified as Americans.”
During the discussion, Carson brought up the divide in America. Carson told the group of religious and community leaders that America needs a knowledgeable electorate.
He recalled how politicians are saying the “economy is wonderful” right now, but they haven’t noticed that many Americans can’t go out and find a job. “They haven’t noticed that,” Carson said while pointing out an example of manipulation of the electorate.
“The real number is the labor force participation rate… That number is at its lowest in 37 years – that’s part of the problem,” Carson explained.
“That entitlement mentality has been particular destructive,” Carson said, adding especially in the black community which worries him.
“The problem is at the rate we are going pretty soon there won’t be anything to give,” he said of the government spending.
“What we need to be emphasizing … especially in the black community … we need to teach people to turn their dollars over on their own community,” Carson suggested. “Churches are places of great potential healing and insight in our society … there is such a thing as God’s word,” he said explaining he believes the church can teach America what is right and what is wrong.
“I truly believe that if anyone can unite the United States citizenry, it is Dr. Carson. He has so much strength and resolve to help everyone and leave a stronger and more stable nation for the future generations,” Davenport stated.
Davenport likes Carson because he isn’t a politician – which was something other voters echoed during the Family Freedom Summit in Ames, Iowa this past Saturday.
The audience at the Family Freedom Summit – like the group of church leaders – responded well to Carson when he spoke of religious liberty. Breitbart News spoke to Carson after his press conference at the Family Freedom Summit and asked if he believes religious liberty will be a top issue in the 2016 election.
“I think it’s a crucial issue for our nation. There was a reason that Freedom of Religion is our First Amendment and once we start trampling on that, we become like the nation’s that our people were fleeing from when they established this nation – we don’t want that to happen,” he told Breitbart News.
While speaking to the church and community leaders, Carson separated himself from career polticians.
“I’m not a politician, so I don’t mind talking about it,” Carson challenged, referring to the federal government spending and national debt.
Carson discussed the fiscal gap and how it could be fixed; comparing Italy to Greece, saying Italy took a different path than Greece did.
“Greece continues to be irresponsible,” he explained, adding Italy increased its retirement age and cut retirement benefits to save the country from falling under due to welfare and entitlement programs.
“We’re going down a very dangerous path,” Carson explained about American’s increasing debt and government entitlement programs after comparing and contrasting Italy and Greece.
“We have got to get out or the mess we are in,” he stated, saying the economic crash of 1929 would be a “walk in the park” to what could happen now to America saying that even with warnings of the increased spending consequences, politicians in Washington, D.C. continue the government spending.
“He is a natural leader who has had an extraordinary life of serving others,” Davenport said. “As I learned more and more about Dr. Carson it was evident to me that he would be extremely successful at any thing he put his mind to, if given the opportunity – including being the President.”
As a former pediatric neurosurgeon, Carson brought up Obamacare.
“The fact of the matter is, I’m interested in health care for every body, but I want it to be good health care,” he said. “America was designed as a nation that is of for and by the people,” he added, saying that, but with Obamacare, the government came in and said it didn’t care what the people think – and passed the health care law despite the opposition.
Carson pushes his plan of health savings accounts. He believes an individual should set aside savings to care for themselves.
“Health savings accounts can be funded in a variety of different ways and give people total control of where, how and with whom they wish to spend their healthcare dollars. Most people will want to get the biggest bang for the buck and will independently seek out both value and quality. That, in turn, will bring all aspects of medicine into the free-market economic model, thus automatically having an ameliorating effect on pricing transparency and quality of outcomes,” Carson previously wrote for NewsMax.
Carson also touched on the topic of illegal immigration, saying America must “seal all the borders” and said “not just using fences and walls, but electronic surveillance.”
He likes the idea of giving those illegal immigrants already in the United States guest worker status, but if they want to be citizens, they must go to the end of the line and go through the same steps everyone else has before them.
Davenport wants to spread Carson’s message and bring awareness to his solutions to political and policy issues plaguing Americans.
“It was obvious to me that throughout his life Dr. Carson had consistently achieved and accomplished things that people said he couldn’t do,” Davenport explained. “So, with the fact that he has decided to run, he can win and then that will be another instance of Dr. Carson doing what the naysayers said he could not do! For me, as a volunteer, that means I just need to keep helping more and more people to hear his message!”
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