The Comments Of Alphonso Jackson

At the end of last month, Alphonso Jackson, head of the housing and Urban Development, said some things at a talk in Dallas that were quite disturbing.

After discussing the huge strides the agency has made in doing business with minority-owned companies, Jackson closed with a cautionary tale, relaying a conversation he had with a prospective advertising contractor.

“He had made every effort to get a contract with HUD for 10 years,” Jackson said of the prospective contractor. “He made a heck of a proposal and was on the (General Services Administration) list, so we selected him. He came to see me and thank me for selecting him. Then he said something … he said, ‘I have a problem with your president.’

“I said, ‘What do you mean?’ He said, ‘I don’t like President Bush.’ I thought to myself, ‘Brother, you have a disconnect — the president is elected, I was selected. You wouldn’t be getting the contract unless I was sitting here. If you have a problem with the president, don’t tell the secretary.’

“He didn’t get the contract,” Jackson continued. “Why should I reward someone who doesn’t like the president, so they can use funds to try to campaign against the president? Logic says they don’t get the contract. That’s the way I believe.”

The candidate for the contract probably should not have bit the hand that was about to feed him. You can chalk that up to a lack of common sense. But common sense was also lacking on Jackson’s part. Jackson later claimed that he made the story up just to get a point across. Well it’s too late for that. The inspector general is now looking into Jackson’s comments to see if he violated federal law by refusing to award a contract because of party affiliation.

I wonder if this is indicative of The State Of . . . black leaders in the GOP? Perhaps they feel that only those members in their very small club should be rewarded for the tough row they’ve had to row for supporting the president and the GOP? Or perhaps this guy was just an idiot.