Donald Trump says he wants to fix cities. Ben Carson will make them worse.

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HUD's privatization opened up new possibilities for crony capitalism. HUD staffers channeled money to Republican-connected lawyers, consulting firms and developers. One of the dozens swept up in the investigation was Trump's former campaign manager, Paul Manafort, who successfully lobbied for about $43 million in federal subsidies for a shabby New Jersey housing complex, a place described as "a shamble of cinder blocks long past the point of repair." He received $326,000 in fees for his efforts and eventually owned a 20 percent share of the development, which showed few signs of improvement after winning the HUD grant. Eventually, 16 HUD staffers and external consultants were convicted. (Manafort was never charged with wrongdoing.)

History never repeats itself exactly, but Pierce's time at HUD offers some warnings for Carson's nomination. Like Pierce, Carson is shaping up to be a token black Cabinet member. Trump has not appointed any other black officials so far, and given his lack of high-profile black supporters, he doesn't have many prospects. Like his predecessor, Carson has little management experience. And like Pierce, he will oversee an agency whose budget includes substantial contracts with politically connected nonprofits, real estate developers, and mortgage lenders. The possibilities for corruption are legion with a HUD secretary who knows nothing about the agency, its programs and its vastly complex budget.

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HUD turned 50 last year. Metropolitan America has changed a lot in the half-century since Johnson created the agency. But cities' problems are no less pressing, even if Trump left them unaddressed on the campaign trial as he railed about crime. In most urban areas, economic and racial inequality has spiked. Urban housing is a case study in market failure: too much for the rich and, in many cities, for international speculators. Affordable, high-quality housing is scarce, especially in rapidly gentrifying cities such as New York, Washington and Los Angeles. Even poorer cities such as Detroit, Philadelphia, St. Louis and Milwaukee have huge waiting lists for subsidized housing units. Poverty has risen sharply in the suburbs. Many of the poorest Americans, urban or suburban, are left to the vagaries of a predatory rental market. Few working-class and poor people can afford to live in job-rich suburbs and exurbs or send their children to the best-funded school districts. And many municipalities are struggling with collapsing tax bases, decaying infrastructure, and aging housing.