Hopkins, a vital political contact who would later become one of the chief architects of the New Deal and would bring Niles into the Roosevelt administration. Niles would serve as the Director of the American Business Census in Massachusetts (1933–1934), a consultant, director, and assistant administrator of the Works Progress Administration (1936–1939), Special Assistant to the Secretary of Commerce (1939–1940), as well as a consultant and advisor to the Office of Production Management and War Production Board before becoming a presidential advisor to Franklin Roosevelt. Communist allegations In 1943, Congressman Fred Bradley accused Niles of having Communist connections while involved with the Ford Hall Forum. Allegedly based on information regarding Niles' past that had been provided by his childhood classmate at Boston Latin School, Joseph Kennedy, these accusations are thought to have been largely motivated by antisemitism. More recent allegations of Communist connections to Niles have arisen: A Venona decrypted message from New York to Moscow reported on a plan to send a husband and wife team of NKVD 'illegals' to Mexico. The message reads: Through CAPITAN'S (Roosevelt's) advisor David Niles –will take 3-4 days, will cost 500 dollars.... [A]round Niles there is a group of his friends who will arrange anything for a bribe. Through them TENOR (Michael W. Burd) obtains priorities and has already paid them as much as 6000 dollars. Whether NILES takes a bribe himself is not known for certain. Burd was a Soviet agent and an officer of the Midland Export Corporation in New York City. Truman Administration Following Roosevelt's death, Niles remained in the presidential cabinet as an advisor to President Harry Truman. Niles was instrumental in convincing the President to admit 100,000 refugees into the United States from the displaced persons camps in post–World War II Europe. In 1947, President Truman awarded him the Medal for Merit. At the time, Niles was the longest serving aide in White House history. Entrusted with minority affairs, Niles was one of the key forces behind the desegregation of the United States Armed Forces. Niles and Israel Niles was a committed Zionist and was important in providing access to the White House for American Zionists. Niles' efforts on behalf of Jewish statehood earned him the support and praise of such figures as Chaim Weizmann and Moshe Sharett. Upon the establishment of the State of Israel and the opening of an Israeli embassy in Washington, Niles became close