Dr. Ben Carson: "Poverty Is A State Of Mind"

Dr. Ben Carson, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

The New York Times reports that the current Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Dr. Ben Carson who has no background in housing, told Armstrong Williams at SiriusXM Radio that poverty is "a state of mind."

“I think poverty to a large extent is also a state of mind,” he said, according to a transcript of the interview that was released on Wednesday. “You take somebody that has the right mind-set, you can take everything from them and put them on the street, and I guarantee in a little while they’ll be right back up there.” He added that helping people may not better their lives. “You take somebody with the wrong mind-set, you can give them everything in the world — they’ll work their way right back down to the bottom,” Mr. Carson said.

And Twitter had a field day:

Ben Carson said poverty is a state of mind.

Next month, I'm going to tell my landlord that I paid my rent with positive thinking!

— Zerlina Maxwell (@ZerlinaMaxwell) May 24, 2017

I just imagined a few million into my bank account, thanks Ben Carson https://t.co/uYqFjQwWXR

— thomas a moore 🎈 (@Thomas_A_Moore) May 24, 2017

Poverty is a state of mind Ben Carson? Tell that to a kid who can't afford lunch for school or won't have anything to eat for dinner.

— still kimberly (@bkimberlyb) May 24, 2017

Ben Carson Says 'Poverty Is a State of Mind'.

So if your kids are hungry today, just think them up a hamburger.

— Chris Downing (@chrisdowning) May 25, 2017

Ben Carson says that poverty is a "state of mind."
Tell that to my low-income students whose parents struggle w/the basic necessities.

— Talia (@2020fight) May 25, 2017