Ben Carson will endorse Donald Trump Donald TrumpExclusive: DOJ let Russian lawyer into US before she met with Trump team Frustration grows over stalled Russia sanctions bill McCain: Russia scandals ‘sucking the oxygen out of the room’ MORE for president on Friday. 
 
 Carson, the retired neurosurgeon who ended his own presidential bid earlier this month, will join Trump at a press conference at the businessman’s Mar-A-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Fla., to make the announcement. 
 
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 Trump confirmed the endorsement in the GOP debate Thursday night. And Trump, talking about Common Core, said Carson "will be very much involved in education." 
 
 Carson said earlier in the day in a Fox News Radio interview with John Gibson that he would be open to being an adviser for Trump. 
 
 "I'm willing to be an adviser to anyone who is going to have a significant effect on the future of our nation," he said. 
 
 Trump and Carson both have homes in West Palm Beach and proved to be friendly adversaries throughout the nominating process. 
 
 Their campaigns colluded at one point to seize the debate negotiating process from the Republican National Committee, and Trump went strongly after Ted Cruz Ted CruzMcConnell presses holdouts: Let’s vote Overnight Healthcare: McConnell warns Senate not to block repeal debate | Insurers knock Cruz proposal | WH tries to discredit CBO | Lawmakers propose .1B NIH funding boost Insurers warn Cruz amendment would hurt coverage of pre-existing conditions MORE’s campaign for spreading the false rumor that Carson was dropping out of the race before the Iowa caucuses. 
 
 Carson rarely, if ever, criticized Trump while they were competing, and at debates, Trump repeatedly lauded Carson as a good and decent man. 
 
 Over the summer, Carson became the first Republican to challenge Trump atop the polls, putting an exclamation point on a cycle dominated by political outsiders and insurgent candidates. 
 
 While endorsements have the most part had little impact on the GOP race so far, Carson’s backing could help Trump on a number of fronts. 
 
 Carson will bring the energy of the tens of thousands of grassroots supporters that poured tens of millions of dollars into his campaign coffers. Long after Carson had become an afterthought in the GOP race, he continued to flirt with 10 percent support nationally in the polls. 
 
 Trump has so far done far better among evangelical voters than anyone expected, and Carson could help him solidify that base. He is still admired by many conservatives, who believe he handled himself with a quiet dignity throughout the campaign. 
 
 As the only black Republican candidate that ran for president, Carson could help Trump beat back criticism that Trump has failed to adequately repudiate white supremacist David Duke. 
 
 In Thursday's radio interview, Carson suggested that there are two versions of Trump. 
 
 “There’s the Donald Trump that you see on television and who gets out in front of big audiences, and there’s the Donald Trump behind the scenes," Carson said. 
 
 "They’re not the same person. One’s very much an entertainer, and one is actually a thinking individual," the retired neurosurgeon said of his personal experience with his former rival. 
 
 Carson went on to describe Trump as someone whom one could "reason with very easily and who is very comfortable talking about issues and recognizing that he doesn't have all the answers." 
 
 - Jesse Byrnes contributed 

 MIAMI — Former Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson threw his support behind Donald Trump on Friday, saying the billionaire front-runner has two sides: the combative campaign persona and a "very cerebral" approach in private. 
 
 The endorsement by Carson, who last week suspended his campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, is perhaps the most high-profile nod for Trump since New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie backed his former rival. 
 
 At a news conference at a Trump-owned Mar-a-Lago luxury club in Florida, Carson said there are “two Donald Trumps” — including a measured side of someone who “considers things carefully.” 
 
 The remarks appeared aimed at moderating Trump's image, which has been defined by bluster, belligerence and belittling comments against opponents, including Carson. Trump said the two have "buried the hatchet." 
 
 Carson, however, acknowledged that the country is greatly divided and "hating each other" -- rifts that have been amplified by the current presidential race. 
 
 He also issued an apparent message to GOP establishment leaders who have raised deep concerns about Trump's possible push toward the nomination. 
 
 Carson warned that it is “extremely dangerous” if political parties seek to “thwart the will of the people” and must let the "voice of the people be heard." 
 
 Trump said Carson will a "big, big part" in the campaign, but gave no specifics on possible roles. 
 
 During a Republican presidential debate aired on CNN on Thursday night, Trump confirmed Carson's backing. He said they discussed Carson’s ideas on education and other topics earlier in the day. 
 
 "We spoke for over an hour on education. And he has such a great handle on it," Trump said. "I'm going to have Ben very involved with education, something that's an expertise of his." 
 
 
 
 Donald Trump speaks as Ben Carson looks on during the Oct. 28 Republican presidential candidates' debate in Boulder, Colo. (Rick Wilking/Reuters) 
 
 The support of Carson, a famed retired neurosurgeon and author, will likely give Trump a boost with GOP base voters and evangelicals, who embraced Carson’s campaign in its early days and fueled his brief rise to the top of Republican primary polls. 
 
 [Watch Trump compare Carson to a "child molester" in Iowa] 
 
 Carson’s decision may surprise some of his backers since Trump made blistering critiques over the past year of stories from Carson’s past. But according to people close to him, Carson has gradually come to see Trump as the GOP’s best chance of winning a general election and turning out droves of disengaged voters. 
 
 Appearing Thursday on Fox News Radio, Carson spoke highly of Trump. 
 
 “There’s two Donald Trumps. There’s the Donald Trump that you see on television and who gets out in front of big audiences, and there’s the Donald Trump behind the scenes,” he said. “They’re not the same person. One’s very much an entertainer, and one is actually a thinking individual.” 
 
 Carson halted his campaign this month, telling supporters he saw “no path forward” for his bid. He then officially dropped out of the race in a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference. 
 
 Ever since, Carson has been based at his winter home in West Palm Beach, not far from Mar-a-Lago, which made Thursday’s quiet get-together convenient for the former candidate. 
 
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– Former rival Ben Carson is set to endorse Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump on Friday, the Washington Post reports, citing two sources "familiar with [Carson's] thinking." The two sat down together at a "luxury club" Trump owns in Florida and finalized the agreement on Thursday. The endorsement comes despite what the Post calls Trump's "blistering critiques" of Carson early in the contest. Those critiques included comparing Carson to a child molester at one point, according to USA Today. Regardless, sources say Carson, who dropped out of the race last week, sees Trump as the GOP's best chance to win the White House. In an interview Thursday, Carson complimented Trump, saying he "is actually a thinking individual" when you get him away from big crowds and television cameras. The Hill reports a Carson endorsement could help Trump in a number of ways, including bolstering support from evangelicals, helping fight claims Trump is racist, and bringing a "quiet dignity" to Trump's campaign. The Post says Carson could be Trump's biggest endorsement since another former rival, Chris Christie.