Carson: Journalists Looking into My Past Are ‘Not Very Good Investigators’

DICKERSON: “Earlier, we spoke to former neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson from San Juan, Puerto Rico.”

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DICKERSON: “Dr. Carson, I wanted to start with some back and forth that took place this week about a passing note in your autobiography about being offered a spot at West Point. Here is something that you said at a press conference on Friday.”

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CARSON: I never said I received a full scholarship. I never -- wait a minute. Don't -- don't lie. I never said that I received a full scholarship. Nowhere did I say that.

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DICKERSON: “Full scholarship is actually how West Point refers to the tuition program. But you told Charlie Rose about a full scholarship back on October 9. Let's listen to that.”

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CARSON: “I was offered a full scholarship to West Point, got to meet Westmoreland, go to Congressional Medal of Honor dinners, but decided, really, my pathway would be medicine.”

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DICKERSON: “So, straighten all this out for us.”

CARSON: “Well, you notice I said was offered. I didn't say I received it. It was in the process of a -- some kind of a banquet. There were lot of military officials there. They were very impressed with my incredible rise to city executive officer faster than anyone had ever done that before, and said that, we would be able to get you a full scholarship to West Point. And I said, that's wonderful. I was very flattered by that. But I had already determined that I was going to go to -- on to college and on to medical school. So, that's what happened. And that's what I said. I was offered that. But that was not something I wanted to take. I have tremendous admiration, obviously, for West Point, which is why I included that story, and tremendous admiration for the people who serve in our country. But for people to try to take this and twist it and make it seem like something dishonest seems like dishonesty itself. And also I said within the book very close to that that I only applied to one college. I said I only had enough money to apply to one college. And I told the story behind that. So, how could I have applied West Point if I only applied to Yale? That doesn't make any sense. It seems to me like some of the people who do these investigations are not very good investigators.”