*Housing Secretary Ben Carson experienced somewhat of a brain fart during an exchange with House Democrat Katie Porter in which he appeared to mix up the common foreclosure term “REO” with Oreo cookies.
The gaffe quickly went viral on social media on Tuesday, prompting Carson to offer to send a package of the chocolate-cream cookies to the congresswoman.
In the clip below, Porter, D-California, asks if Carson could explain disparities in REO rates.
Carson appears to not have heard her correctly: “An Oreo?,” he replies.
“No, not an Oreo,” Porter says. “An R-E-O.”
“Real estate?” he asks.
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I asked @SecretaryCarson about REOs – a basic term related to foreclosure – at a hearing today. He thought I was referring to a chocolate sandwich cookie. No, really. pic.twitter.com/cYekJAkRag
— Rep. Katie Porter (@RepKatiePorter) May 21, 2019
REO refers to “real estate-owned properties,” which are typically homes owned by banks in foreclosure.
“What’s the O stand for?” says Porter.
“E-organization?” asks Carson.
Carson later appeared on Twitter to poke fun of his blunder, sharing a photo of himself holding a package of Oreos along with the caption: “OH, REO! Thanks, @RepKatiePorter. Enjoying a few post-hearing snacks. Sending some your way!”
Twitter user Brittany Packnett responded to his post with: “I legit remember a time when Ben Carson was a hero in the black community. He was on all the role model posters. In all the inspirational books. Hell-even Cuba Gooding, Jr. played him in a movie,” she wrote. “Imagine falling from a hero to an oppressive clown and thinking it’s funny. Shame.”
I legit remember a time when Ben Carson was a hero in the black community. He was on all the role model posters. In all the inspirational books. Hell-even Cuba Gooding, Jr. played him in a movie.
Imagine falling from a hero to an oppressive clown and thinking it’s funny. Shame. https://t.co/wZu2yFdOTI
— Brittany Packnett (@MsPackyetti) May 21, 2019
Even “Daily Show host Trevor Noah weighed in on Carson’s embarrassing Oreo moment, saying on his show Tuesday, “If you’ve ever worried you’re not good at your job, you can rest assured that there’s someone even worse at his.”
WATCH:
Good day for Nabisco, bad day for Ben Carson. pic.twitter.com/lJmsl7QyAb
— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) May 21, 2019
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