Ben Carson continues to demonstrate why he is inarguably the worst surrogate in the history of modern American politics. Donald Trump tried to get him the hell out of the spotlight after his untoward ruminations about selecting a vice president. Now Carson has inserted himself squarely into the ugly fight Donald Trump has initiated against a federal judge, Gonzalo Curiel, who is overseeing the fraud lawsuit against Trump University.

In public, Donald Trump insists his racial attacks on an Indiana-born judge of Mexican descent have been “misconstrued.” But in private, Trump concedes he made a mistake, according to Ben Carson, a top advisor and former rival for the Republican presidential nomination.

“He fully recognizes that that was not the right thing to say,” Carson said in an interview, noting he’s heard Trump say so himself during a private meeting this week at Trump Tower.

Just a couple of thoughts. First, I have the feeling that Carson uses these vignettes more to give the illusion that he “sitting at the right hand of Trump” than to help Trump. Having said that, the story is not implausible simply because Carson said it. If Trump has even a whit of introspection he has to know the damage he has done to himself over these attacks. Second, this does not help Trump at all. He has decided to brazen out the incident. If he were going to issue a public apology this would be a great lead-in to it. Now Trump is going to be asked over and over if the story is true. And he will either have to back down in public or disavow Ben Carson.