Former US Republican presidential contender Ben Carson "buried the hatchet" and endorsed party front-runner Donald Trump on Friday, saying he believed the billionaire's pugnacious campaign style hid a more thoughtful private side.
"There are two different Donald Trumps: there's the one you see on the stage and there's the one who's very cerebral, sits there and considers things very carefully," Carson said as he became the second former Republican candidate to back Trump in the White House race.
The soft-spoken retired neurosurgeon, who dropped out of the race last week, addressed the issue of Trump's combative and sometimes crude public image saying the American people would be "comforted" when they discover a gentler side.
"That's the Donald Trump that you're going to start seeing more and more of right now," Carson said during a joint appearance with the real estate magnate at Trump's Mar-a-Lago Club resort in Palm Beach, Florida.
"I have found in talking with him, that there's a lot more alignment, philosophically and spiritually, than I ever thought that there was," he said.
The latest endorsement for Trump followed a Republican debate in Miami on Thursday night at which Trump and the remaining three candidates in the Republican race struck a markedly more civil tone. Carson's backing gives Trump a boost just days before crucial nominating contests in the battle to be the party's presidential candidate for the Nov 8 election.
Carson shot to the top of the Republican pack last year but faltered in the early nominating contests. His endorsement is unlikely to dramatically shift the Republican race but gives Trump additional help as the party establishment cranks up its attacks.
Republican primaries in five states - including Florida and Ohio - on March 15 will be critical for Trump to cement his lead, and to determine whether US Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and Ohio Governor John Kasich will be able to continue with their increasingly long-shot candidacies. Trump's nearest rival in the race is US. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas.
Carson's comments on Friday aimed to soften Trump's public image after a campaign marked by his demeaning personal attacks on opponents, harsh comments about Mexican immigrants and calls to temporarily bar all Muslims from entering the country.