Bernie Sanders said Wednesday that he was disappointed in comments Ben Carson made regarding Muslims and the presidency.
“As soon as he made that statement, we said that that was just very wrong,” the Vermont independent senator told CNN’s Chris Cuomo on “New Day,” adding later, “How long did it take us to elect a Catholic to be a president of the United States in 1960? And people said, ‘Oh my goodness! We don’t want a Catholic. He’s gonna be working for the Pope.”
During an appearance on “Meet the Press” Sunday, NBC’s Chuck Todd asked Carson, “Do you believe that Islam is consistent with the Constitution?”
“No, I do not,” Carson responded. “I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that.”
Sanders said he was disappointed that Carson, the only African-American running for president, would make that comment.
“And how long did it take us to elect an African-American to be president of the United States? What we should be doing is as a people is judge our candidates based on their views, their abilities, not the color of their skin, not on their religion. That is what America is supposed to be about,” he said.
Carson, who has shifted his position on Muslims in politics over the past few days, said Wednesday morning on Fox News that it is his right not to support whoever he chooses for president.
“I never said that a person could not run for office. I just said I would not support them,” he said. “Do I not have the right to support what I want to support?”