Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Dr. Ben Carson told an audience of conservative activists on Friday that the sexual assault allegations facing President Donald Trump's nominee to the Supreme Court are part of a plot by socialists to take over America that dates back more than a century.
"If you really understand the big picture of what's going on, then what's going on with Kavanaugh will make perfectly good sense to you," Carson said at the annual Values Voter Summit in Washington. "There've been people in this country for a very long time, going all the way back to the Fabians, people who've wanted to fundamentally change this country."
The term "Fabians" refers to the Fabian Society, a British socialist organization that was founded in the 19th century, and which today functions as part of the UK's Labour Party. An American chapter of the Fabian society was established in 1895 in Boston, but it is no longer active in the United States.
Nonetheless, Carson vividly described what he claimed the ideological descendants of the Fabians were plotting, and how Professor Christine Blasey Ford's allegation that Kavanaugh assaulted her at a party in the 1980s fit into the plot.
"They don't like what America is and what it represents, and they want to change us to another system. In order to do that, there are three things they must control: the education system, the media, and the courts.The first two of those they have," Carson said. "The other they thought they had, but it was snatched out from under their noses in November of 2016."
Now, Carson continued, these forces "are like wet hornets, just completely lost control off the deep end, and the further they get away from being able to control the courts the more desperate they become," he said. "They don't see themselves as being able to control the courts for another generation, so what is left? Chaos and destruction."
There is no basis for Carson's claim that socialists are plotting to take over American civic institutions. A spokesman for the Department of Housing and Urban Development did not immediately return a call from CNBC Friday seeking clarification of Carson's remarks.
Carson's comments were also noteworthy in that he was among the first members of Trump's Cabinet to directly address the allegations, which have divided the nation and, increasingly, threaten to divide the Republican party. The allegations were first reported to two Democratic lawmakers in July, but only became public this month, as Kavanaugh's confirmation seemed all but assured.
Kavanaugh has denied assaulting Ford, and he has agreed to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the allegation. As of Friday afternoon, representatives for Ford were still negotiating terms under which the California psychology professor would be willing to testify before the committee about what she says was a violent attempted rape in 1982.
A few hours before Carson spoke on Friday, Trump abandoned the uncharacteristic restraint he had shown in recent days when discussing the allegation. The president attacked Ford directly by accusing her of exaggerating what happened, and accusing Democratic lawyers and operatives of plotting to ruin Kavanaugh.
Establishment Republicans were quick to distance themselves Friday from Trump's remarks. But Carson took them a step further. Not only did he frame the sexual assault allegation in the context of a plot with its roots in the Fabian Society, but he also expressed concern that the allegations against Kavanaugh might deter "good people" from seeking positions in government in the future.
"The fearful part is that good people will be afraid to serve their government," Carson told the Values Voters audience. "They won't want to take a chance of their reputation being sullied."
"Sexual predators is abominable," Carson quickly added, and there is "no room for it as far as I'm concerned."
"Having said that, we must always recognize there are two sides to every story. And I can particularly identify" with Kavanaugh, he continued. The secretary then recounted an episode of his life when he was falsely accused of fathering a child out of wedlock. This experience, Carson said, was the reason that he could identify with Kavanaugh.
Kavanaugh is expected to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee next week.
