Lacks ’temperament’

Trump: Carson lacks ’temperament’ to be president

By Nick Gass

Ben Carson does not have the "temperament" to be president of the United States, Donald Trump said Tuesday.

“I think that Ben just doesn’t have the experience," Trump said on the set of ABC's "Good Morning America" in an interview with George Stephanopoulos promoting his new book "Crippled America," which hit bookshelves Tuesday. "Look, you know, I’m going to make the greatest deals you’ve ever seen on trade, we’re going to run the military properly, I’m going to take care of the vets. Ben can’t do those things. Ben cannot deal on trade."

Pressed on why not, Trump remarked that "it's not his thing, George."

"You’re born with it. It’s not his thing. He hasn’t got the temperament for it. It’s not the right thing for him. And there are right things for him," Trump said, though did not go on to say what would be a more appropriate pursuit for the retired neurosurgeon.

The interview comes as Trump has lost ground to Carson in several polls, notably a new NBC/WSJ national poll that showed Carson at 29 percent to Trump's 23 percent.