Less than two months ago Ben Carson surprised pundits when out of nowhere the neurosurgeon jumped to the top of GOP primary polling, surpassing even dark horse Donald Trump.
That surge, however, is now a long gone memory because as the Hill reports, Ben Carson’s top aides have resigned, "casting the retired neurosurgeon’s campaign into chaos just a month before the Iowa caucuses."
Carson’s communications director Doug Watts told The Hill in a statement that he and campaign manager Barry Bennett will step aside. “Barry Bennett and I have resigned from the Carson campaign effective immediately,” Watts said.
The departures are unexpected considering Carson recently announced a solid fundraising effort.
“We respect the candidate and we have enjoyed helping him go from far back in the field to top tier status," he continued. "Having just announced raising $23 million for the fourth quarter, more than any other Republican candidate, and passing 1 million contributions and over 600,000 unique donors since March, we are proud of our efforts for Dr. Carson and we wish him and his campaign the best of luck.”
Even more surprising is that according to the Hill, Carson has been talking about shaking up his campaign, but in an interview with The Hill last week insisted his top advisers were safe.
The publication adds that there has been tension between the team and Armstrong Williams, a close friend and personal adviser to Carson, who has been frustrated by the direction of the campaign.
The problem is that while Carson continues to raise enormous sums of money, his polling numbers have collapsed as the focus of the GOP race has turned to foreign policy in the wake of several high profile terror attacks.
The result is that while Carson has seen his polling tumble, largely at the expense of a resurgent Ted Cruz, Donald Trump regains what one month ahead of the Iowa February 1 caucus remains as insurmountable lead.
So for now, we have placed a question mark over Carson who will hardly throw in the towel. That said, it is only a matter of time before the "?" becomes a "X", and barring some dramatic change, sees Trump continue to steamroll through the competition as the presidential race enters its final lap.