Trump Has Officially Tapped Ben Carson for Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

As expected, Donald Trump has chosen former Republican presidential rival Ben Carson to serve as his secretary of housing and urban development, the Washington Post reports.

Carson previously said that he would feel like a "fish out of water" as a federal bureaucrat under Trump, but the guy seems to have changed his mind. The retired brain surgeon has never held a government position and has no housing policy experience, but recently told FOX that he "grew up in the inner city" and "dealt with a lot of patients from that area," so apparently it'll be chill.

As head of HUD, Carson will be tasked with developing fair housing programs and managing assistance for low-income housing projects. Despite his lack of experience in that area, Carson criticized the Obama administration in July for using legislative means to improve racial equality in the housing market—a view that has many low-income housing advocates concerned.

"With many qualified Republicans to choose from with deep knowledge of, and commitment to, affordable housing solutions for the poorest families, and with the housing crisis reaching new heights across the country, Dr. Carson's nomination to serve as HUD Secretary is surprising and concerning," Diane Yentel, president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition, wrote in a statement.

Donald Trump, on the other hand, disagrees. "Ben Carson has a brilliant mind and is passionate about strengthening communities and families within those communities," the president-elect said in his own statement released Monday.

Watch: Donald Trump's Day One Agenda