Here’s the question of the hour:  Was Ben Carson always a damn crook or did he just become that way under Trump’s influence?

It strongly appears that Carson used his position to allow his family to gain a lucrative government contract.

Carson was warned not to take his family along on “listening tours” because it might seem that it would be a conflict of interest.  Carson did not heed the warning and even allowed his son to make inappropriate follow-up calls to the tour.

The officials also told Cruciani [HUD’s deputy general counsel] that Carson Jr. and his wife asked that Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, be invited.

A little less than three months later, according to federal records, CMS awarded a $485,000 contract to the consulting company Myriddian, whose chief executive is Merlynn Carson. Carson Jr. identifies himself online as one of Myriddian’s board members. The contract was awarded without a competitive bidding process, federal records show, although a CMS spokesman said multiple minority-owned firms were considered.”

It’s a complicated story but it results in family ties being stronger than that portrait of Carson with Jesus.  Carson’s wife, son, and daughter-in-law accompany him almost everywhere.  To their credit, he hasn’t gotten lost recently.

Thanks to SGray for the heads up.