Baltimore's Dr. Carson Tweets: 'Honored To Accept' Trump HUD Nomination
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Dr. Ben Carson, the retired Johns Hopkins neurosurgeon who ran for the Republican presidential nomination before supporting rival Donald Trump, has accepted the president-elect's nomination to lead the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, he tweeted Monday.
— Ben & Candy Carson (@RealBenCarson) December 5, 2016
Although rumors had been swirling about the nomination for several days, Trump tweeted it Monday morning.
Carson became a trump supporter after dropping out of the presidential race in march.
No one, including Carson himself, expected that after retiring, the Maryland surgeon and former director of Johns Hopkins Pediatric Neurosurgery would make politics his new vocation.
WJZ's Denise Koch was among the first to discuss that transition with him in an interview at his home where Carson told her he saw a need in the political system.
"What was missing in our political system was regular people," said Carson. "In fact our system was not designed just for members of the political class. It was designed for people who understand each other. We'll have a representative government."
During the campaign Carson took Trump to his childhood home to show the challenges facing low-income neighborhoods, and last month when his name came up for housing secretary he tweeted - he feels he can "make a significant contribution particulary to making our inner cities great for everyone."
As Trump's secretary of housing and urban development he will have that opportunity.
Like other cabinet officials, Carson's nomination has to be confirmed by the senate.
The department of housing and urban development is a $48 billion agency that oversees public housing.
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