Just hours after vowing to stay in the race until there was a clear nominee, Dr. Ben Carson all but waved the white flag.
"I do not see a political path forward in light of last evening's Super Tuesday primary results," the retired pediatric neurosurgeon said in an email to supporters on Wednesday afternoon. Carson said he would skip a Republican presidential debate scheduled for Thursday in Detroit. Carson said he would discuss his plans at greater length Friday at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington.
Carson's acknowledgment of the political reality of his presidential bid —in which he's earned just eight delegates after the results of 15 Republican contests — comes after weeks of arguing until the final hours that despite the slim odds there was still a place for him in the 2016 race for the White House.
Carson brought to the race a serene and deeply religious demeanor with a rags-to-riches story so incredible it has its own made-for-TV movie; he was an outsider in the year everyone wanted one; a calm voice in a race marked by insinuations about a candidate's manhood; and a health care professional in a race that centered around repealing Obamacare.
