Ben Carson attempted to show off his foreign policy chops at FreedomWorks’ Rising Tide Summit Saturday, delving into details of his plan for Syrian refugees and for fighting the Islamic State.
Carson said the administration has presented a set of “false choices” in the debate over how to handle Syrian refugees by claiming the U.S. can either accept them into the country or abandon them to the Islamic State.
“There’s a third choice that is better than either of those, and that choice is to take care of them over there, in safe areas,” he said Saturday evening.
Carson suggested stepping up support to Jordan to care for the refugees or resettling them in the friendlier region of Syria controlled by Kurds.
“I’m sure the Kurds would be very helpful to have them as long as we provided the military support to help them,” Carson said.
The Iowa event was among the last major cattle calls in the state before the caucuses begin early next year.
Carson has seen his second-place position slip recently as he has stumbled over questions about national security and foreign policy. He currently places fifth on the Washington Examiner‘s presidential power rankings.
