Tea party favorite Dr. Ben Carson says he will probably announce his presidential plans next month,
according to The Hill.
In a conference call Tuesday night with supporters, Carson said, "I will more than likely make an announcement one way or another during the first week of May."
During the question-and-answer session with supporters, the retired neurosurgeon admitted that his decision to join the race for the GOP nomination will be based on the amount of cash he has in a presidential campaign war chest.
"I'm a person who is very fiscally responsible, so I never like to be in debt," Carson said.
"I'd want to make sure we have many months of excess funding to take care of any eventuality that comes up, and thanks to the tens of thousands of people who have donated, we're rapidly approaching that."
Carson's business adviser, Armstrong Williams, who hosted the call, said the doctor has been deluged with grassroots donations in recent months, The Hill reported.
Williams further noted that 35,000 people have given to Carson's potential campaign since he launched a presidential exploratory committee in early March.
"We've been just so overwhelmed by the number of people who have participated," Carson said. "Tens of thousands of people who have called in and made donations. They're small donations, but they add up.
"If I decide to run, I really want to run as a candidate of the people, and not as a candidate of special interest groups and people who get big donations and expect big favors for them."
As he gears up for a GOP race, the outspoken conservative angered Democrats last week by comparing President Barack Obama to a
"psychopath" for his skill at lying to the American people.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is the only candidate to have officially announced he is entering the 2016 race, although Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul is expected to announce he's a contender next week and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio in two weeks.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.