Donald Trump supporter Dr. Ben Carson says the Republican front-runner needs to "read the Bible and pray" and "step out of the center of the circle and let it be about other people" as he attempts to
repair the damage done to his campaign by
recent missteps.
Asked Friday during an interview on "Election Central With Rita Cosby" on WABC Radio in New York City what advice he would give the real estate billionaire in transitioning to a more presidential persona, Carson replied:
"I would say read the Bible and pray. And learn how to put yourself in other people's shoes. That's what did it for me. As many people know, I used to have a pretty horrible temper. And I came to understand after that attempt to stab another youngster that to lash out at people was not a sign of strength but rather a sign of weakness. It meant that other people could control you and that the environment could control you.
"And if you did it on a regular basis it also meant that you were selfish. It meant that it was always about me, my, and I. Somebody did this to me."
In November, when Carson was still a top rival in the GOP race,
Trump mercilessly ridiculed the retired neurosurgeon's account of trying to stab a close relative when he was 14 years old, only to have the knife be blocked by a belt buckle.
When
Carson endorsed Trump last month, he said the two had "buried the hatchet" over such taunts.
"He's an amazing individual to be able to go through all this," Carson said of Trump to Cosby Friday. "I mean the stamina that it takes to go to all these places, to fend off all the unfair criticism. It's not an easy task. And the faint of heart will not undertake it."
Carson believes the best thing Trump can do to show a more serious side is to simply be himself instead of a caricature.
"The biggest problem is that people don't see the real man here. You see the television personality, the reality TV personality. That's not the real person. And he's got to find a way to let people see the real Donald Trump. And I think they'll be much more comfortable with that individual."
Carson said a change in approach will slowly happen.
"I don't think it will be an overnight transition. But I think you're gonna start seeing that transition. And what I've said continually is this is a man who heads up a huge empire worldwide. And he clearly has the ability to delegate. He couldn't possibly run all of that by himself. And more importantly it's so hard to find anybody who's worked for him who doesn't like him. Which means he's fair to people.
"All up and down the line from the top to bottom. And that's something I think that we need right now. Because what we've had in recent years, depending on who's in office, is, 'this is my favorite group. These people should get special treatment.' Everybody should get special treatment…."
"For him it's just a matter of just switching over to his normal persona. As opposed to 'The Apprentice' persona."
As for being more humble, Carson said that can be accomplished "if you just know how to step out of the center of the circle and let it be about other people. [Then it is] very difficult for anybody to make you angry.
"Proverbs 19:11 says, 'the glory of a man to pass over a transgression.' Just because somebody does something wrong, you don't have to jump up and down."
Carson warned the GOP against any attempts to steal the nomination from Trump at a brokered convention.
"The Republican base is not completely stupid," he said. "And they realize that if we put somebody in there who has not won the vote of the people, it's gonna be a disaster.
"And they also know that the other alternative, Ted Cruz, tends to be a very polarizing figure. The likelihood of him bringing over moderates and Democrats is almost zero…."
"What I'm really hoping for is that cooler heads prevail all over and recognize that if shenanigans are engaged in or if the people get the impression that shenanigans are engaged in and we dampen their enthusiasm, you guarantee the election of another progressive and you get two to four Supreme Court picks and America as we know it is gone and your children and your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren will regret tremendously what you have just done to them."