News item: Republican strategist Sig Rogich – who advised the campaigns of then-Congressman Jim Gibbons for governor in 2006 and U.S. Sen. John McCain for president in 2008 — breaks party ranks to announce that he’s for Democratic U.S. Sen. Harry Reid in 2010. (Source: AP, via WTOP-FM 103.5; Feb. 3, 2009.)

News item: Reid inserts $8 billion into the stimulus plan that can be used for high-speed rail projects, distributed by competitive grant. Included in the groups that could receive rail funds? The DesertXpress, a high-speed rail line between Las Vegas and Victorville, Calif., that counts among its investors — wait for it, wait for it — Sig Rogich! (Source: Review-Journal, Feb. 13, 2009.)

Now, to be fair, Rogich has supported Reid in the past, and has been making his case in Washington for funding for the DesertXpress for years. So, it’s probably just coincidence that nine days after Rogich told the AP he’s going to vote for Reid (thus demonstrating the Democratic senator has some high-profile, bi-partisan appeal in his home state) funds are approved that may very well flow to a Rogich-backed, for-profit choo-choo that, if sucessful, stands to make the consultant some serious bucks.

Important caveat: The money won’t go directly to the DesertXpress; the project will have to stand on its merits. But it will sure be interesting to see if the 3:10 to Victorville ends up with a chunk of that $8 billion, won’t it?

UPDATE: Just to be clear, the high-speed rail funds are not directed to any specific project. They’ll be allocated by competitive grant by the secretary of transportation. Apparently, Republicans and right-leaning commentators had that wrong.