Two of Ben Carson's top aides resign. Chaos ensues.
Two of Ben Carson's top aides have resigned from the campaign amid tensions with another adviser, Talking Points Memo reports. Communications director Doug Watts and campaign manager Barry Bennett have left allegedly due to a tussle with conservative radio personality Armstrong Williams, an aide who does not have an official role in the campaign.
Williams has been an "ongoing problem since day one," an unnamed source told NBC. The same source said that Carson's floundering in the polls and struggles fundraising are "all self-inflicted wounds created by Armstrong Williams."
"Barry Bennett and I have resigned from the Carson campaign effective immediately," Watts told NBC News in a statement. "We respect the candidate and we have enjoyed helping him go from far back in the field to top tier status...We wish him and his campaign the best of luck."
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The Washington Post's Robert Costa reported that the Carson campaign is in turmoil over the loss of the top advisers.
While Carson once posed a threat in the polls to front-runner Donald Trump, his numbers have seen a dip in recent weeks, bottoming out at 11 percent in the most recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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