Two years ago, facing a sea of reporters, Jeff Bezos praised Van Jones as an extraordinary philanthropic leader, handing the CNN commentator a $100 million blank check to distribute as he saw fit. Bezos had just completed his first suborbital rocket flight and, feeling plucky, had dressed as a space cowboy, forcing Jones to duck beneath his expansive hat as the two men embraced.

Jones looked down, his eyes seemingly misty. “Sometimes, dreams come true,” he said.

Since then, the mist has lifted. This summer, Jones left the board of one of his principal nonprofits, Dream.org, after tussling with the group’s leadership over its direction, multiple sources with ties to the organization told The Daily Beast. According to a person with direct knowledge of the situation, he did not leave by choice.