Dear Commons Community,

There has been a relentless media barrage during the past week questioning  Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson’s claims in his biography, Gifted Hands.  Interviewed on Sunday morning’s Meet the Press, the Democratic candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, criticized the media for scrutinizing Carson’s personal story, stating that they should instead focus on his policy positions.

“I think it might be a better idea, I know it’s a crazy idea, but maybe we focus on the issues impacting the American people and what candidates are saying, rather than just spending so much time exploring their lives of 30 or 40 years ago.  And I think the reason that so many people are turned off to the political process has a lot to do with the fact that we’re not talking about the real issues impacting real people.

… Sanders told Meet the Press host Chuck Todd that while he found the controversy “interesting,” voters ultimately do not care. 

“Look, I listened to the interviews with Dr. Carson. And it’s interesting,” he said. “But you know what, Chuck? The American people want to know why the middle class of this country is disappearing, why we have 47 million people living in poverty, why we have massive income and wealth inequality.”

Sanders is on the top of his game!

Tony