Many readers will remember Kenneth Tomlinson -- the former head of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Bush crony who took it upon himself to try to purge PBS and NPR of "liberal advocacy journalism."

After hundreds of thousands of activists called for his ouster, Tomlinson was forced to resign after the CPB's Inspector General found he had secretly hired investigators and lobbyists without notifying the board.

But even after leaving CPB, Tomlinson retained another plum appointment as head of the Broadcasting Board of Governors -- the federal agency that oversees Voice of America, Radio Marti and other overseas broadcasts.

Controversy followed Tomlinson to the BBG. As NPR first reported last year:

The State Department inspector general found that Tomlinson had improperly hired a friend as a contractor, starting at $88,000 a year; that Tomlinson had staffers run personal errands, such as buying a belt, flowers, and books; that he charged the government for too many hours on the clock; that he charged the agency for days he also worked for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting; and, incredibly, that Tomlinson operated his horseracing business out of his government office.

Tomlinson stepped down from his BBG post in January because of the allegations. But apparently the full story hasn't come out.

In a letter sent to the State Department today, Rep. Henry Waxman, chairman of the House Committee on Government Oversight, exposed a new wrinkle in the Tomlinson saga. According to Waxman, State Department IG Howard Krongard:

Improperly tipped off Kenneth Tomlinson, the head of the Broadcasting Board of Govemors, which operates Voice of America and all other government-sponsored international broadcasting, about an ongoing investigation into allegations of misconduct by Mr. Tomlinson.

And that's not all. Waxman also charges that Krongard improperly handled a confidential request from Congress:

According to officials within your office, you directed your assistant to fax the congressional request - including the whistleblower's complaints - directly to Mr. Tomlinson's office. This action was inconsistent with standard investigative procedures and, according to multiple sources, jeopardized the investigation. One source told Committee staff that these actions caused an important source to become wary of cooperation with the investigation because of fear of retaliation.

The Hill has more on the story.

Tomlinson is reportedly writing a book to clear his name. I can't wait to hear how he tries to weasel out of this one.