Ben Carson threatens to leave the Republican Party

Supporters at a town hall at University of South Carolina Aiken Convocation Center agreed that it would hurt the chances of having a Republican president win the 2016 election if Trump chose to launch a third-party run.

“I have many friends that are Muslims, and I will tell you, they are so happy that I did this because they know they have a problem”, Trump said.

“No, I’m not going to threaten to leave the party, because I actually am a Republican”, Fiorina said.

There has been a clear favorite going into both major parties’ conventions for many years – Americans have not seen anything resembling a brokered or splintered nominating process since 1976, the last time the race to lead the party was decided at any political convention. Trump on Sunday said Cruz doesn’t have the right temperament or the right judgment to be president, and has acted in the Senate “like a little bit of a maniac”.

Trump is overwhelmingly viewed by Republican voters as decisive and competent. Polls show Florida Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas has taken a substantial lead over Trump.

But on the flip side, some political experts envision a way for Donald Trump to win the most primaries throughout the early voting season and still end up on the sidelines. Trump’s call this week to ban Muslims from entering the United States caused heartburn for a GOP organization attempting to widen the appeal of the party, but Trump kept his commanding lead in a new Reuters/Ipsos survey released Friday.

This statement comes one day after the leaders said the race for the White House is unpredictable and it could lead to a contested convention in July, when the Republican nominee will be announced.

Just over a month ago, Ben Carson was the only Republican presidential candidate who had managed to overtake Donald Trump at the top of the almighty RealClearPolitics polling average. While an independent run is “highly unlikely”, he said, the pledge is a “two-way street”. “But he signed the pledge based on everybody playing by the rules”.

Carson told ABC News on Friday that he had no plans to run as an independent. “But I certainly don’t want to be a part of corruption”, he said.

In the meantime, Carson has continued his downward trend in other polls, leaving him tied for third nationally on the RCP average. That tactic has generally been rewarded with substantial media coverage and, according to his campaign, an increase in financial support.

Third-party candidates might poll well early in the campaign. While many Republicans have confronted him publicly, Vatz noted party leaders and other GOP candidates have been wary of pushing him out of the party entirely.

It’s the first time Carson has suggested the possibility of bucking the GOP – though he has previously stood with Trump in pressuring the party to meet demands, including on debate structure. “That is their bind”. “It’s no surprise a candidate like this – who never went without health care – wants to repeal it and throw these people back into emergency rooms and clinics”, she said.

Senior GOP officials met at a routine private dinner this week and discussed the possibility of a brokered Republican convention, which hasn’t happened in decades.