Trump questions Carson’s ‘pathological temper’, faith

Published 9:24 am Friday, November 13, 2015

FORT DODGE, Iowa — Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, brushing aside any recent claims of civility, has equated Ben Carson’s childhood “pathological temper” to the illness of a child molester, questioned his religious awakening and berated voters who support him.

“How stupid are the people of Iowa?” declared Trump during a rally at Iowa Central Community College. “How stupid are the people of the country to believe this crap?” For more than an hour and a half Thursday night, the billionaire real estate mogul harshly criticized not only Carson, but many of his other competitors in the race for the GOP presidential nomination.

In his free-wheeling appearance, Trump also said Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who is rising in the polls, was “weak like a baby, like a baby” and “not a good poker player because every time he’s under pressure he starts to just profusely sweat.” And he said former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush didn’t deserve his attention because his campaign is doing so poorly.

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Trump accused Democratic front-runner Hilary Rodham Clinton, who is campaigning to be the first female president, of “playing the woman’s card, big league.”

But his strongest words, by far, were aimed at Carson, whose powerful life story and soft-spoken demeanor have captured the attention of many voters. Trump, once the undisputed poll leader, is now running neck-and-neck with Carson in many opinion surveys.