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Carson and Trump are dominating, but their chummy rapport turns cool
The Washington Post
Philip Rucker and Robert Costa
10/24/2015
Excerpt:
The two men could not be more different: One grew up poor and black in Detroit, the other rich and white in Queens. One is soft-spoken and spiritual, the other loud and caustic. Each epitomizes American success, though in vastly different arenas: one as a brain surgeon, the other as a celebrity deal-maker.
But together, Ben Carson and Donald Trump stand as the dominant Republican candidates for president. Their rise and durability — polls show that combined they have the support of 50 percent or more of GOP voters — have befuddled political elites and become the defining dynamic heading into the next debate, Wednesday in Boulder, Colo.
For months, such rivals as Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz have assumed that voters eventually will get serious, the outsiders’ stars will flicker out and the real politicians will assume control. Yet, it is late October and that has not happened. By delivering sharp, visceral messages that galvanize the angry electorate, Carson and Trump today are monopolizing the race more than ever.
“The two outsiders have put a blanket over everybody else,” said Doug Gross, a Republican establishment figure in Iowa. “Nobody else can even get oxygen.”
The relationship between Carson, 64, and Trump, 69, has zigzagged from cordial to chummy to cool. They see themselves as kindred spirits, so much so that Trump has said he would consider Carson as his vice president.
Each has resisted bludgeoning the other, but with tensions rising as the kickoff Iowa caucuses draw near, they are starting to take each other on. After fresh polls last week showed Carson leapfrogging Trump for the lead in Iowa, Trump went on the attack.
“We have a breaking story: Donald Trump has fallen to second place behind Ben Carson,” Trump announced Friday night at a rowdy Miami rally. Pausing for dramatic effect, he added, “We informed Ben, but he was sleeping.”
Carson is “super low energy. We need tremendous energy,” Trump thundered, prompting his supporters to break into chants of “USA! USA!” He also said Carson could not create jobs and negotiate trade deals.
.................................................. .................
View the complete article, including video and images, at:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...1dc_story.html
The Washington Post
Philip Rucker and Robert Costa
10/24/2015
Excerpt:
The two men could not be more different: One grew up poor and black in Detroit, the other rich and white in Queens. One is soft-spoken and spiritual, the other loud and caustic. Each epitomizes American success, though in vastly different arenas: one as a brain surgeon, the other as a celebrity deal-maker.
But together, Ben Carson and Donald Trump stand as the dominant Republican candidates for president. Their rise and durability — polls show that combined they have the support of 50 percent or more of GOP voters — have befuddled political elites and become the defining dynamic heading into the next debate, Wednesday in Boulder, Colo.
For months, such rivals as Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz have assumed that voters eventually will get serious, the outsiders’ stars will flicker out and the real politicians will assume control. Yet, it is late October and that has not happened. By delivering sharp, visceral messages that galvanize the angry electorate, Carson and Trump today are monopolizing the race more than ever.
“The two outsiders have put a blanket over everybody else,” said Doug Gross, a Republican establishment figure in Iowa. “Nobody else can even get oxygen.”
The relationship between Carson, 64, and Trump, 69, has zigzagged from cordial to chummy to cool. They see themselves as kindred spirits, so much so that Trump has said he would consider Carson as his vice president.
Each has resisted bludgeoning the other, but with tensions rising as the kickoff Iowa caucuses draw near, they are starting to take each other on. After fresh polls last week showed Carson leapfrogging Trump for the lead in Iowa, Trump went on the attack.
“We have a breaking story: Donald Trump has fallen to second place behind Ben Carson,” Trump announced Friday night at a rowdy Miami rally. Pausing for dramatic effect, he added, “We informed Ben, but he was sleeping.”
Carson is “super low energy. We need tremendous energy,” Trump thundered, prompting his supporters to break into chants of “USA! USA!” He also said Carson could not create jobs and negotiate trade deals.
.................................................. .................
View the complete article, including video and images, at:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/polit...1dc_story.html