Carson’s Advisers Not on Board with Nazi References

Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson, moving into the frontrunner status, does not seem to follow his campaign advisers on his regular references to Nazis and slavery when discussing domestic policy.

Now leading in the polls in the Iowa caucuses and threating to push Donald Trump into 2nd place in national polls, some of his supporters and closest aides worry that referencing gun control to the Holocaust could threaten to obscure his message as a man with the right temperament to fix Washington.

Speaking to The Associated Press on Tuesday, Carson’s communications director Doug Watts admitted that “the Nazis may not be the most perfect comparison” to illustrate his position on gun control. “We’ve spoken to him several times and said, ‘You can find better examples,’ and he understands that,” Watts said. “It is not a deliberate strategy.”

However, in an interview with AP, the Republican presidential hopeful once again argued against gun control by referencing the Nazis. “What happened in Nazi Germany can never happen again unless we forget it, unless we won’t talk about it,” Carson was quoted as saying.

On Sunday, Carson went as far as to claim that he received the backing of “Rabbis” and “from many people in the Jewish community” for suggesting that Jews obtaining guns in the 1930′s could’ve prevented the Holocaust.

Heading into the 3rd GOP debate on CNBC, Watts told AP that for all the staff concerns, “the candidate’s preparations for the Wednesday debate have not included instructions on avoiding references to slavery or Nazis.”

“He’ll find his equilibrium,” Watts said. “That I’m sure.”