HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson is in hot water -- and quite possibly legal liability -- for telling an audience [1] in Dallas that HUD didn't award a contract to a company whose CEO opposed President Bush. Doesn't that beg the question, just who does HUD choose to award contracts to?

Shirlington Limo, for one. According to Ken Silverstein at Harper's [2], HUD awarded the limousine company now synonymous with Brent Wilkes' poker games and what-not a $519,823 contract. I guess Shirlington Limo CEO Chris Baker didn't criticize Bush, huh?

Come to think of it, with a statement like Jackson's today, why just investigate Shirlington's Department of Homeland Security contract [3]?

And why just investigate one contractor when the Secretary of HUD just admitted a mere statement in opposition cost a company a contract? I'm pretty sure a cursory look through HUD's contract recipients would turn up some companies connected to big name GOP donors and lobbyists. What do you think?