A thief in the first lady's box?

Claude Allen got a choice seat for the State of the Union speech even after telling White House officials that he'd been charged with a crime.

Published March 14, 2006 2:55PM (EST)

And who says they're asleep at the switch?

White House domestic policy advisor Claude Allen -- who now stands accused of felony charges that he repeatedly stole merchandise from Target and Hecht's -- was a guest in the first lady's box at the State of the Union speech on Jan. 31. As the New York Times reports, that was nearly a month after Allen told Andy Card and Harriet Miers that he had been issued a misdemeanor citation for theft.

Update:Perhaps we're rushing to judgment here. As several readers point out below, Allen has reportedly suggested to friends that his ne'er-do-well twin brother may have been responsible for the events that led to his arrest. So maybe that wasn't Claude Allen in Laura Bush's box after all. . . .


By Tim Grieve

Tim Grieve is a senior writer and the author of Salon's War Room blog.

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