Story highlights Carson had suggested earlier on Tuesday that if elected president he might be the first African-American person to hold the position

Obama was born in Honolulu to a white American mother and a Kenyan father. Carson was born in Detroit to two black American parents.

Washington (CNN) Ben Carson defended his recent statement that President Barack Obama was "raised white," saying he meant to draw a sharp contrast between the President's middle-class upbringing and his own rough early life.

Carson had suggested earlier on Tuesday that if elected president he might be the first African-American person to hold the position. And speaking to CNN's Poppy Harlow on "CNN Newsroom" later that afternoon, Carson suggested Obama's upbringing did not reflect the experiences of many other African-Americans.

"I grew up in Detroit, and I grew up in Boston. In Boston, we lived in the ghetto. There were a lot of violent episodes there. There were rats, there were roaches. It was dire poverty," Carson said, speaking of his mother who worked around-the-clock but refused to accept welfare. "Now, let me contrast that to the President, who went to private schools, grew up in a relatively affluent environment, had an opportunity to live in multiple cultures and different countries. I think that's a very different experience."

Carson maintained that he was not "criticizing" Obama. But he had gone further in an interview with Politico's Glenn Thrush on his "Off Message" podcast that aired Tuesday

"He's an 'African' American. He was, you know, raised white," the retired neurosurgeon said. "So, for him to, you know, claim that, you know, he identifies with the experience of black Americans, I think, is a bit of a stretch."

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