Ex-White House aide arrested in alleged refund scam

Ex-White House adviser facing shoplifting charges
Posted by Mark Silva at 9:45 am CST and updated 12:15 pm CST

When the news was first broken here at The Swamp that Claude Allen, the president's former domestic policy adviser, had submitted his resignation in early February, the White House said Allen wanted to spend more time with his family. (Hipster says Don't they always say that?)

It appears now that he may have been seeking more time with his defense attorney.

Claude Alexander Allen, 45, had been under investigation in Maryland since early January for an alleged scheme to defraud department stores of thousands of dollars in a refund scheme and was arrested on Thursday on charges of a felony theft scheme and theft over $500, according to Montgomery County police -- charges carrying possible sentences of up to 15 years.

President Bush today expressed shock :shock: over the arrest of Allen, who was the White House's highest ranking African-American staffer and had once been nominated for a federal judgeship.

"When I heard the story last night I was shocked,'' Bush said today, during a photo opportunity after a briefing by a task force working on the military's defense against improvised explosive devices. "And my first reaction was one of disappointment, deep disappointment that, if it's true , that we were not fully informed. But it was also one – shortly thereafter, I felt really sad for the Allen family.''

The White House also maintains that Allen had misled officials there about the seriousness of a problem he appears to have been having at the time of his resignation in early February.

"If the allegations are true, Claude Allen did not tell my chief of staff and legal counsel the truth, and that's deeply disappointing,'' the president said today. "If the allegations are true, something went wrong in Claude Allen's life, and that is really sad."

Under investigation since January for alleged thefts on two dozen occasions at Target and Hecht's department stores, Allen had told White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card and Counsel Harriet Miers that there was some confusion over his credit card, according to a White House spokesman. "He assured them that he had done nothing wrong and the matter would be cleared up,'' spokesman Scott McClellan said.

The White House announced the surprise resignation of Allen, who had served as a senior assistant to the president and domestic policy adviser since early 2005, on Feb. 9.

It was first reported in The Swamp, however, on Feb. 8 that Allen had submitted his resignation that day. At that time, McClellan said Allen had said he wanted to spend more time with his family.

Allen's alleged scheme involving about $5,000 of stolen goods had first been detected at a Target department store in his home town of Gaithersburg, Md. on Jan. 2, where the store reported observing Allen placing merchandise in a shopping bag and than taking it to customer service with a receipt for a refund.

Police say that Allen was given a citation that day but not arrested and that a subsequent investigation using store videotapes determined he had done this many times before – sometimes purchasing items, taking them outside and then returning with a receipt to receive a refund for a similar product taken off the shelf.

According to a report by the Montgomery County Police:

A Target loss prevention manager observed Allen on Jan. 2 selecting merchandise throughout the store on Grand Corner Avenue in Gaithersburg and placing it in a Target bag. He put additional items in his cart. Then he went to "guest services" and produced a receipt and recieved refunds for the items he had just taken from the shelves.

An investigation determined that Allen had been receiving refunds for more than $5,000 during the past year. Some of the fraudulent returns were made at Targets, some at Hecht's, a Washington area department store chain.

"He would buy items, taken them out to his car and return to the store with a receipt,'' the report states. "He would select the same items he had just purchased and then return them for a refund.''

Allen is "known to have conducted approximately 25 of these types of refunds,'' the report states.

The goods ranged from clothing to a Bose home theater system, stereo equipment and a photo printer, and in some cases goods worth as little as $2.50

Allen's attorney has told the Washington Post that Allen is denying any wrongdoing and called the alleged incident "a series of misunderstandings.''

The timing of Allen's resignation was curious – coming a day after Bush spoke at a memorial service for Coretta Scott King and at a time when Bush is attempting to improve relations with the black community.

That week, Allen had spoken out in support of the president’s proposed new budget, defending the 2007 spending plan with its cuts in health care and education and maintaining that America’s “safety net’’ is strong.

“The message that I want to leave with you today is that, as far as the administration's proposals are concerned, when we look at core safety net programs that impact low-income individuals, the state of the union is not only strong, but in this area the programs are effective and are working,’’ Allen said that week.

"When you talk about core safety net programs, you're talking about housing, you're talking about food, you're talking about health care, education, and you can even throw work in as a means of folks coming out of poverty and low-income,’’ he said. “The safety net is tight and strong, and I think those are some very important points to bear in mind.’’

Allen had served as assistant to the president for domestic policy, replacing the president’s good friend Margaret Spellings when she assumed a Cabinet post as Secretary of Education.

Allen had served as deputy secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, and as secretary of Health and Human Resources for the state of Virginia.

An attorney, he had been an associate in a powerful Washington law firm, Baker and Botts, from 1991 to 1995, and served on the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Bush nominated Allen for a seat on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in 2003, but Democrats blocked his confirmation, citing his relative lack of legal experience.

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Ex-White House adviser facing shoplifting charges
Posted by Mark Silva at 9:45 am CST and updated 12:15 pm CST

When the news was first broken here at The Swamp that Claude Allen, the president's former domestic policy adviser, had submitted his resignation in early February, the White House said Allen wanted to spend more time with his family. (Hipster says Don't they always say that?)

It appears now that he may have been seeking more time with his defense attorney.

Claude Alexander Allen, 45, had been under investigation in Maryland since early January for an alleged scheme to defraud department stores of thousands of dollars in a refund scheme and was arrested on Thursday on charges of a felony theft scheme and theft over $500, according to Montgomery County police -- charges carrying possible sentences of up to 15 years.

President Bush today expressed shock over the arrest of Allen, who was the White House's highest ranking African-American staffer and had once been nominated for a federal judgeship.

"When I heard the story last night I was shocked,'' Bush said today, during a photo opportunity after a briefing by a task force working on the military's defense against improvised explosive devices. "And my first reaction was one of disappointment, deep disappointment that, if it's true , that we were not fully informed. But it was also one – shortly thereafter, I felt really sad for the Allen family.''

The White House also maintains that Allen had misled officials there about the seriousness of a problem he appears to have been having at the time of his resignation in early February.

"If the allegations are true, Claude Allen did not tell my chief of staff and legal counsel the truth, and that's deeply disappointing,'' the president said today. "If the allegations are true, something went wrong in Claude Allen's life, and that is really sad."

Under investigation since January for alleged thefts on two dozen occasions at Target and Hecht's department stores, Allen had told White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card and Counsel Harriet Miers that there was some confusion over his credit card, according to a White House spokesman. "He assured them that he had done nothing wrong and the matter would be cleared up,'' spokesman Scott McClellan said.

The White House announced the surprise resignation of Allen, who had served as a senior assistant to the president and domestic policy adviser since early 2005, on Feb. 9.

It was first reported in The Swamp, however, on Feb. 8 that Allen had submitted his resignation that day. At that time, McClellan said Allen had said he wanted to spend more time with his family.

Allen's alleged scheme involving about $5,000 of stolen goods had first been detected at a Target department store in his home town of Gaithersburg, Md. on Jan. 2, where the store reported observing Allen placing merchandise in a shopping bag and than taking it to customer service with a receipt for a refund.

Police say that Allen was given a citation that day but not arrested and that a subsequent investigation using store videotapes determined he had done this many times before – sometimes purchasing items, taking them outside and then returning with a receipt to receive a refund for a similar product taken off the shelf.

According to a report by the Montgomery County Police:

A Target loss prevention manager observed Allen on Jan. 2 selecting merchandise throughout the store on Grand Corner Avenue in Gaithersburg and placing it in a Target bag. He put additional items in his cart. Then he went to "guest services" and produced a receipt and recieved refunds for the items he had just taken from the shelves.

An investigation determined that Allen had been receiving refunds for more than $5,000 during the past year. Some of the fraudulent returns were made at Targets, some at Hecht's, a Washington area department store chain.

"He would buy items, taken them out to his car and return to the store with a receipt,'' the report states. "He would select the same items he had just purchased and then return them for a refund.''

Allen is "known to have conducted approximately 25 of these types of refunds,'' the report states.

The goods ranged from clothing to a Bose home theater system, stereo equipment and a photo printer, and in some cases goods worth as little as $2.50

Allen's attorney has told the Washington Post that Allen is denying any wrongdoing and called the alleged incident "a series of misunderstandings.''

The timing of Allen's resignation was curious – coming a day after Bush spoke at a memorial service for Coretta Scott King and at a time when Bush is attempting to improve relations with the black community.

That week, Allen had spoken out in support of the president’s proposed new budget, defending the 2007 spending plan with its cuts in health care and education and maintaining that America’s “safety net’’ is strong.

“The message that I want to leave with you today is that, as far as the administration's proposals are concerned, when we look at core safety net programs that impact low-income individuals, the state of the union is not only strong, but in this area the programs are effective and are working,’’ Allen said that week.

"When you talk about core safety net programs, you're talking about housing, you're talking about food, you're talking about health care, education, and you can even throw work in as a means of folks coming out of poverty and low-income,’’ he said. “The safety net is tight and strong, and I think those are some very important points to bear in mind.’’

Allen had served as assistant to the president for domestic policy, replacing the president’s good friend Margaret Spellings when she assumed a Cabinet post as Secretary of Education.

Allen had served as deputy secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services, and as secretary of Health and Human Resources for the state of Virginia.

An attorney, he had been an associate in a powerful Washington law firm, Baker and Botts, from 1991 to 1995, and served on the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Bush nominated Allen for a seat on the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit in 2003, but Democrats blocked his confirmation, citing his relative lack of legal experience.

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hipsterdufus said:

Oh poo. I didn't see this before starting my own thread on the topic.Mods can you merge it? It's in the Scandal Du Jour category.

http://www.debatepolitics.com/showthread.php?p=252502#post252502

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Billo_Really said:

And this is just the tip of the iceberg.

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Stinger said:

And this is worthy of discussion because...................

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hipsterdufus said:

This just in....Bush has hired Winona Rider to replace Claude Allen.

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cnredd said:

He was gonna hire a Liberal, but Allen was a thief with a mental disorder...

He didn't want to downgrade...

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hipsterdufus said:

It's a pretty small pool if you're looking for a Righteous Black Homophobe Cleptomaniac to replace Allen.

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hipsterdufus said:

This just in....Bush has hired Winona Rider to replace Claude Allen.

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cnredd said:

Just walk into the NAACP headquarters...That's Black Homophobe Cleptomaniac Central...

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hipsterdufus said:

I'll pass that info on to the Philly headquarters for ya!

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