I bet both of these "things" pass unnoticed.
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1 Cabinet member Sec. of HUD, Alfonso Jackson
1 Special Assistant to the President, Felipe Sixto
from MSNBC
Jackson, 62, has been fending off allegations of cronyism and favoritism involving HUD contractors for the past two years.
The FBI has been examining the ties between Jackson and a friend who was paid $392,000 by Jackson's department as a construction manager in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
When the existence of the criminal probe was revealed in October, the White House said President Bush supports Jackson and that Jackson "expects that the investigation will clearly establish that he did nothing improper or unethical."
In another controversy, the housing authority in Philadelphia has filed a lawsuit alleging that Jackson tried to punish the agency for nixing a deal involving music-producer-turned-developer Kenny Gamble, a friend of Jackson.
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http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/5657728.htmlWhite House aide quits over money allegation
Lawyer stepped down in probe of apparent misuse of USAID funds
By JAMES GERSTENZANG
Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON — For the second time in four weeks, a mid-level White House aide has resigned under a cloud, this time for allegedly misusing money provided to a previous employer by the U.S. Agency for International Development.
White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said Friday that Felipe Sixto, who began work at the White House in July as associate director of the office of intergovernmental affairs, had resigned March 20. Three weeks earlier he had been promoted to special assistant to the president, two levels beneath the top staff post.
Stanzel said Sixto, a lawyer, stepped down in connection with an alleged conflict of interest in which he was implicated while he was chief of staff at the Washington, D.C.-based Center for a Free Cuba. The center describes itself as an independent organization that promotes human rights and democracy in Cuba.
"Mr. Sixto allegedly had a conflict of interest with regard to how USAID funds were utilized while in his previous employment," Stanzel said.