Mother Jones
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Ben Carson’s resumé doesn’t read like those of your average presidential aspirant—pediatric neurosurgeon, best-selling author, motivational speaker. And to help plot his long-shot path to the White House, this unlikely candidate has turned to a man with an even more unconventional background: a magic-loving entrepreneur and celebrity lawyer named Terry Giles who made a cameo in the Monica Lewinsky scandal, defended serial killers, and for 14 years chaired the board of a controversial self-help empire created by a mercurial pop psychologist. That is, not the usual political operative.
When Carson formally announced his candidacy for the Republican presidential nomination on Monday, he gave a shout out to Giles, his campaign chairman. “When I started this endeavor…I asked him to put together the rest of the team in order to be able to do this,” Carson said, introducing Giles to the audience. With no more political expertise than the candidate himself, the 66-year-old attorney has spent the last nine months assembling a campaign outfit from scratch, including mining Newt Gingrich’s 2012 operation for key hires.
For Giles, putting together a presidential bid is the latest venture in an eclectic career that has included stints as a car dealer, chateau baron, and magic-club owner. “I have adult ADD,” he says in an interview. But Giles is no dilettante; as a lawyer, he has been ruthless in defending his clients’ interests—a trait that may be particularly useful during what will likely be a combative GOP primary contest.
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Ben Carson Hired a Magic-Loving, Castle-Owning, Crisis-Management "Fireman" to Plot His 2016 Bid
