I have written a few columns recommending Ben Carson for president, although I always let it be known that Ted Cruz is my first choice. First Ted, then Ben, but recent information has caused me to doubt my initial decision. Ben may be fading fast into the dark night of political oblivion.

Carson has many admirable traits: his honesty, his courage, his intellect, his character; however, I am beginning to question his wisdom. One cannot get wisdom with a medical degree or purchase it with cash, check, or credit card as Trump has demonstrated. Wisdom comes from God, for the Bible says in James 1:5, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.“ Dr. Carson has not displayed wisdom in some matters, and it concerns me.

It is not necessary to detail where I agree with Carson. He is a good conservative with strong biblical overtones. But he has bumbled, fumbled, and stumbled, and I and others must determine if he has crumbled so bad that he should be kept him far from the Oval Office.

No candidate is perfect and one must go with what is available; however, I have some questions about Carson as listed below.

Carson slipped, stumbled, staggered, and stalled when he declared that "Sharpton and I have the same goal. Just different ideas on how to get there.” I don’t understand how anyone — liberal or conservative, black or white, Christian or atheist — could make such a statement. Everyone not living in a cave knows Sharpton is an incompetent, inarticulate, and insincere race baiter interested in publicity, power, and his purse. Similar to most television evangelists!

Carson admitted in the April, 2015 issue of National Review that he spoke at Sharpton’s National Action Network’s (NAN) national convention in New York City April 8, 2015, during its 17th annual meeting. He declared, “NAN is one of the leading civil-rights organizations in the United States. It was founded in 1991 by the Reverend Al Sharpton to promote a modern civil rights agenda that includes the fight for one standard of justice, decency and equal opportunities for all people regardless of race, religion, nationality or gender.” Say what? Is that the same Sleazy Sharpton that everyone ridicules?

One thing about Sharpton: He does not try to conceal his distain, distrust, and disgust for the police, white people, and conservatives, or maybe he is so dense that he is not aware how disreputable, disgusting, and despicable he is. And MSNBC officials are of the same breed or do not care about Sharpton’s disgusting behavior since he parrots the progressive pablum of radical leftism. Under the threat of racism, he browbeats, bullies, and blackmails corporations to support his and other “civil rights” groups. How can any person with character come within a hundred feet of him without himself being sullied? Carson stumbled badly.

This is the reason I have always been careful about the groups I speak to lest I add some credibility to those who do not deserve it. Of course, no one agrees with anyone about everything, but there must be some standard. Carson shared (and maybe lost) some of his credibility by aligning himself with a person and group that no reputable person would have any association with.

In his book, America the Beautiful, Carson opined, “I believe we have taken the moral low road on this issue (of illegal aliens). Some segments of our economy would virtually collapse without these undocumented workers–we all know that–yet we continue to harass and deport many individuals who are simply seeking a better life for themselves and their families.” However, recently at Liberty University, he agreed with Trump that the border should be secure but disagreed with him about returning eleven million illegal aliens back to Mexico. He was concerned about the huge farms that needed workers and hotels that needed people to clear rooms and serve tables.

In June of 2015 Carson told a major assemblage of Latino officials that he supports giving illegal immigrants a path to legalization and eventual citizenship. Would I appear crass, crude, or even cruel if I reminded everyone that 10,000 Americans are killed by illegal aliens each year?

It is generally believed that his denomination is not in the mainstream of orthodox thought when they teach Saturday worship, pacifism, soul-sleep, etc., but it might be worse. Steve Deace, writing for Townhall.com, declared, “There was Carson posting on Facebook that Easter wasn’t about Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for the sins of the world, and ensuing resurrection proving He was the only Son of God. Rather, Carson posted Easter was about ‘acceptance’ and said Christians and Muslims are children of the same God. That, of course, would be news to Christians and Muslims alike. Since one side says the basis for their faith is Christ’s resurrection from the dead, and the other side claims he was never crucified in the first place.” Steve is right on target.

Carson slipped out of the ranks of orthodox Christianity when he told Adventist Ministry magazine in Oct. of 1981: “We believe the revelation and inspiration of both the Bible and Ellen White’s writings to be of equal quality. The superintendence of the Holy Spirit was just as careful and thorough in one case as in the other." If he has changed his mind, then he should say so.

Carson supports mandatory vaccinations, telling The Hill: "Vaccinations should be mandatory, with no religious or philosophical exemptions, and schools should check to make sure children have received them.” I have written a lengthy report on vaccination,s and it is a fact that childhood diseases were all falling before massive vaccinations because of improved sanitation, vitamins, better health care, and cleaner environment. Moreover, there is a risk with all vaccinations that many consider not worth the risk. Plus, mandatory vaccinations is totalitarian.

Ben got further into left field when he came out in support of the president’s Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP); then topped that when he decided not to rid the nation of the abomination known as the Department of Education; and then he even wants to use college classrooms to spy on professors to make sure they are not biased. Of course, bias is always in the eyes of the beholder. Why should any monitoring be necessary in a college classroom unless overthrow of the government is promoted?

The good doctor has been fuzzy as to when an unborn child begins to live; consequently, he suggested abortion for rape and incest, which is a major stumble. He further alienated most Americans when he suggested that semi-automatic weapons should be restricted to rural areas, etc. Not only do conservatives disagree with him on these issues, but I question his political savvy in light of his running as a conservative candidate. Nor can I understand why his campaign manager and other advisers would lead him to enter such frigid political waters.

American Thinker quoted Carson saying, “I was proud to see groups such as the Black Panthers standing up to brutal police tactics, and though I never joined any radical student organizations, I kept abreast of the activities of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), the Weathermen, and other groups willing to use aggressive tactics to accomplish ‘social justice.’” Dumb!

I can live with some of the above, but not when he climbs into bed with the race baiter, white hater of the century: Louis Farrakhan! Yes, the one who called Hitler “a very great man.” The one who tried to get his followers to kill the Washington Post reporter who reported Jesse Jackson’s infamous anti-Semitic Hymietown comment in the 1980s. Carson’s top advisor is Armstrong Williams, who has close ties with Louie. Armstrong has advised Chicago to hire Farrakhan’s group to work security and to fight crime–funded by taxpayers. Williams attended Farrakhan’s 1995 anniversary of the Million Man March and did his radio broadcast this year from that annual event.

Anyone who needs advice about any connection with Farrakhan has major discerning problems. Farrakhan even delivered his shrill diatribe at an independent baptist church in Miami! The angry, acrimonious, and asinine Farrakhan, who is the epitome of a racist motor mouth, belched out his venom again, demanding, “If the federal government will not intercede in our affairs, then we must rise up and kill those who kill us. Stalk them and kill them. Let them feel the pain of death that we are feeling.” I think Louie has an attitude problem, and anyone who gives him any support has a problem with principle. Had I said such a thing about killing blacks, I’d be making license plates at this time.

So, realizing that there are no perfect candidates, what do I do? I listen, read, and watch each candidate, then vote for the one who most reflects my principles. Since Carson has slipped, staggered, stumbled and stalled, I will rearrange my choices: Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee, Trump, Carson — which is subject to change!

(Boys’ new book, The God Haters, was recently published by Barbwire Books. To get your copy, click here. An eBook edition is also available. Boys is a former member of the Indiana House of Representatives and wrote for USA Today for eight years.)