Ben Carson Friday said he was sorry for questioning Donald Trump's faith, and regretted taking the front runner's "bait" on such an argument.
"I think I did slip, and that’s why I apologized,"
Carson told Fox News’ Greta Van Susteren. "There is no reason ever to question anybody’s faith. That’s something between them and God."
Carson had commented this past week that he did not think that topics like "fear of the Lord" or humility are important to Trump, who remains in first place in many national polls, while Carson has been placing second.
"I really should not have taken that bait," Carson told Fox News Friday night. "I just don’t want to get into that at all."
Trump, though, has refused apologies for several comments about Carson and other fellow candidates, Mexicans and more, and told NBC "Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon that while he fully thinks "apologizing is a great thing," he will have to be wrong before he says he's sorry.
"I will absolutely apologize sometime in the hopefully distant future if I'm ever wrong," Trump told Fallon.
Trump also didn't appear to be backing down on Carson on Saturday, when he told reporters at a rally in Ames, Iowa that he doesn't think the retired neurosurgeon "has the energy" it would take to be president,
reports The Hill.
"Ben is a nice man," Trump said. "But when you’re negotiating against China, and you’re negotiating against these Japanese guys who are going to come in waves… we need people who are really smart, who have tremendous deal-making skills, and have tremendous energy."
Trump on Saturday continued to slam Carson on the faith issue a day after the other candidate had apologized.
"In all fairness, Ben hit me on my faith, and you don’t hit a person on his faith," Trump said. "I don’t know him, he knows nothing about me."
The rally was being held at a tailgate party before the University of Iowa/Iowa State matchup, and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio also attended the event.
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