Carson on HUD Post: “I AM NOT LEAVING!”
11 March 2019 | US Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson recently sought to clear up confusion about his political future after telling conservative outlet Newsmax TV (in an interview that aired March 4) that he would prefer to leave his office after President Donald Trump’s term is completed.
Carson, who is a member of the Adventist Church, posted a lengthy March 8 Facebook update titled “I AM NOT LEAVING!” in which he said he was committed to finishing his four years as HUD secretary.
He added that if Trump won a second term in 2020, he would “consider serving another term.”
In the Facebook post, Carson said that he had been approached in an airport by a number of people thanking him for his service to the country. He said that those that thanked him “expressed regret that I was leaving the Trump administration.”
Carson’s term at the helm of the HUD so far has not been without controversy. Early in his term, Carson very publicly canceled a $31,000 dining set that had been ordered for his office against the backdrop of severe anticipated budget cuts at the HUD. He also defended plans to raise the rent on public housing as a way to help tenants reach their God-given potential.
Carson is a former neurosurgeon who launched a 2016 U.S. presidential bid to be the Republican Party candidate. After his failed campaign, Carson accepted an invitation to become secretary of the HUD in President Donald Trump’s administration.
