'' As a world-renowned neurosurgeon, Dr. Carson knows a thing or two about healing,'' said John Philip Sousa IV, co-founder and chairman of The 2016 Committee, the political action committee originally formed to draft Carson into the presidential race. ''I know I speak for millions of Americans in thanking Dr. Carson for entering this race and pledging to support his candidacy. ''
'' Dr. Carson s candidacy represents the best and really the only opportunity we have to heal America and to bring Americans back together again under the banner of our Constitution, '' Sousa added.
The Committee has been at the forefront of the movement urging Dr. Carson to run for president. Starting in August of 2013, it conducted a petition campaign that ultimately collected more than 500,000 signatures from Americans urging Dr. Carson to enter the race. The Committee operates full time offices in Iowa and New Hampshire, and chairmen are in place in nearly every state coordinating more than 30,000 volunteers nationwide. The Committee has raised more than $16 million from more than 150,000 individual donors since 2013.
'' For two years, Dr. Carson has said that if people clamored for him to run for president, he would have to answer their call, '' said Vernon Robinson, The 2016 Committee s campaign director. ''Well, they indeed clamored, and he has answered them. But our work is far from over. We will continue growing the massive grassroots network in place to support Dr. Carson s candidacy, and look ahead toward key Republican presidential straw polls and the September debate at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library .''
''Dr. Carson s candidacy will build on the massive grass-roots network that sprang up to encourage him to get into the race in the first place, '' Robinson said. '' He s in it to win it, and we re with him all the way. ''
Dr. Carson is consistently among likely Republican voters top picks for the nomination. In one recent CNN survey, Dr. Carson placed second behind Mitt Romney but ahead of other likely contenders including former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie. Dr. Carson finished an impressive second place in the 2014 Bloomberg/Des Moines Register presidential poll of likely caucus-goers, and scored an overwhelming victory in the Polk County Republican Dinner in Des Moines in August. He also won the Linn County, Iowa, midterm caucus straw poll in January 2014.
The now-retired Dr. Carson chose Detroit for his announcement because that s where he grew up and because he wanted to use the bankrupt city as a metaphor for President Obama s failed economic policies. He says his campaign will speak out against Mr. Obama s radical left-wing agenda, because he loves his country and wants to save it.
