There is a chink in Donald Trump's armor and his name is Ben Carson. After beating the businessman soundly in two recent Iowa polls, the neurosurgeon has now taken the lead nationally. A new CBS/NYT poll gives him a four-point advantage.
Twenty-six percent of Republican primary voters back Carson, giving him a four-point edge over Trump (22 percent). Support for Carson has quadrupled since August.
Trump acknowledged his opponent is 'doing well,' yet showed little concern that he is in danger of giving up his lead.
"I have tremendous crowds and tremendous love in the room and, you know, we seem to have hit a chord. But some of these polls coming out, I don't quite get it. I was No. 1 pretty much in Iowa from the beginning, and I would say we're doing very well there. So I'm a little bit surprised," he said. "The other polls, as you know, in other states are extraordinary."
Carson's surge is perhaps surprising considering the context. Earlier this month, the candidate announced he was taking a break from his campaign to focus on his book tour. Additionally, he has received a lot of flak for his string of controversial comments. Yet, the polls prove that most of the outrage was brewing in the media, not the general public.
The rest of the field is 'far behind' in single digits, CBS reports.