In his 2011 book, Ben Carson was a much better friend to Muslims

Retired neurosurgeon and 2016 presidential hopeful Ben Carson came under fire Sunday for saying that a Muslim shouldn't be president because Islam is not compatible with the U.S. Constitution. But that comment stands in stark contrast to Carson's views of Muslims in 2011.

"Freedom of religion is one of the basic tenets of the founding of our nation, and while we are primarily a Judeo-Christian nation, we are a nation of faith that encompasses many religions and beliefs," Carson wrote in his 2011 book, America the Beautiful. "There are 1.4 billion Muslims in the world and to paint them with a single philosophical brush is just as absurd as trying to characterize the diverse thinking of billions of Christians around the world."

That's not to say that Carson was completely warm and friendly to Muslims in 2011 — Carson also claims in his book that the majority of non-radical Muslims don't speak up about violence just as Germans who "did not subscribe to Hitler's insanity... remained silent, paving the way for some of the most monstrous acts against humanity ever committed." Still, the Carson who wrote that he is "delighted to know that [people of different faiths] believe in something that is more likely to make them into a reasonable human being" is a far cry from the man who this weekend said he "would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation."

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