Baltimore Church Gave Ben Carson The Boot Before Trump-Defending Briefing

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carsons press conference in Baltimore on Wednesday didnt get off to the best of starts.

A Morning Star Baptist Church of Christ member asked Carsons staffers and the media to leave its vacant lot because they had not sought prior permission to use it for the Trump Cabinet secretarys press briefing, reported The Atlantic.

Carson ended up delivering his speech, in which he defended President Donald Trump s racist attacks on Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and the city, nearby.

Church member Gregory Evans told The Baltimore Sun it was nothing personal that he asked the trespassers to leave and said he hadnt known it was Secretary Carson.

I just know there were a bunch of people over there that were taking over our site, Evans told the newspaper. And we said, Why are they here? Theyve not even asked for permission to be here.

HUD has to move its Carson press conference. Gregory Evans, a member of Morning Star Baptist Church of Christ, says the church owns the property and did not give permission to hold the press conference. pic.twitter.com/uTKAKR7CMw

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HUD has to move its Carson press conference. Gregory Evans, a member of Morning Star Baptist Church of Christ, says the church owns the property and did not give permission to hold the press conference. pic.twitter.com/uTKAKR7CMw
Pamela Wood (@pwoodreporter) July 31, 2019

Carson used the incident in his speech to cameras to complain about animosity.

For instance, you guys know, you were set up on this property, and right here is this church that said: Get off our property. You know, a church? When were talking about helping the people. I mean, this is the level to which we have sunken as a society, he said.

Carson worked as a neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for more than three decades. He hailed the excellent and wonderful people and lot of good places in the city, but said he agreed with Trump that there are problems and we cant sweep them under the rug.

There are a lot of excellent wonderful people here ... but there are problems and we cant sweep them under the rug, says HUD Secretary Ben Carson. pic.twitter.com/vZJ6jAkcZs

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There are a lot of excellent wonderful people here ... but there are problems and we cant sweep them under the rug, says HUD Secretary Ben Carson. pic.twitter.com/vZJ6jAkcZs
Pamela Wood (@pwoodreporter) July 31, 2019

Carson later likened certain parts of Baltimore to a patient with cancer who you can dress up and put a nice suit on it and you can try to ignore it, but that cancer is going to have a devastating effect, reported NPR .

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He also said Trump was very willing to work with Cummings on solutions for the city.