Former neurosurgeon and presidential candidate didn’t actually get a full scholarship to West Point as he said in his autobiography Gifted Hands, the campaign admitted to Politico on Friday.
In that autobiography, Carson said he met with Gen. William Westmoreland in 1969 and that led to West Point offering him a “full scholarship.” It’s one of the things media outlets have pointed to as a “fascinating” part of Carson’s incredible life. But that life might be just a little too incredible.
“West Point, however, has no record of Carson applying, much less being extended admission,” Politico reported on Friday.
The campaign admitted as much in response to Politico’s reporting:
“Dr. Carson was the top ROTC student in the City of Detroit,” campaign manager Barry Bennett wrote in an email to POLITICO. “In that role he was invited to meet General Westmoreland. He believes it was at a banquet. He can’t remember with specificity their brief conversation but it centered around Dr. Carson’s performance as ROTC City Executive Officer.”
“He was introduced to folks from West Point by his ROTC Supervisors,” Bennett went on. “They told him they could help him get an appointment based on his grades and performance in ROTC. He considered it but in the end did not seek admission.”
Politico also requested records of Westmoreland’s schedule on the day Carson says he met with him in Detroit but, “the general’s records suggest he was in Washington that day and played tennis at 6:45 p.m.” A similar event to the one Carson described took place in February, not May.
Such a revelation is sure to raise questions about Carson’s credibility, particularly after new reports surfaced that no one in Carson’s life interviewed by CNN could actually remember that he tried to stab someone as described in his book.
Update:
A Carson spokesman disputed Politico’s reporting on Friday afternoon, telling the Daily Caller that the Politico story “is an outright Lie.”
“Dr. Carson as the leading ROTC student in Detroit was told by his Commanders that he could get an Appointment to the Academy. He never said he was admitted or even applied. The campaign never ‘admitted to anything.’ This is what we have come to expect from Politico.”
Update:
Politico stood by its story, calling it “a powerful debunking of a key aspect of Ben Carson’s personal narrative.”