US: Republican Ben Carson ‘jokes’ about poisoning same-sex wedding cakes http://t.co/j5Z6Oqu4CE via @pinknews

— Kragar (@Kragar_LGF) January 26, 2015

Mr Carson took his objectionable comments one step further during a Q&A session, according to the Hill, while commenting on lawsuits against bakeries that refused to bake same-sex wedding cakes.

He said: “What I have a problem with is when people try to force people to act against their beliefs because they say ‘they’re discriminating against me.’

“So they can go right down the street and buy a cake, but no, let’s bring a suit against this person because I want them to make my cake even though they don’t believe in it… Which is really not all that smart because they might put poison in that cake.”

The Hill notes his comments were met by “chuckles from some of his staff and dead silence from the journalists in the room”.