The $19,000 lectern that sparked controversy in Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ office is finally being revealed to the public. After a thorough audit, it has been discovered that the procurement and payment process for the lectern may have potentially violated several state laws.
The governor’s office dismissed the investigation as a misuse of taxpayer resources and time, labeling the audit report as deeply flawed.
Related posts
This Article Includes
- 0.1 Related posts
- 0.2 Newport News City Council Greenlights 89% Salary Increase for Mayor and Council Members: Mayor’s Pay Set at $51,000, Council Members to Earn $47,000
- 0.3 tropical storm warning for South Texas and Mexico as the first storm forms
- 1 Potential violations include tampering with public records
- 2 Lectern has no electronic components, despite special features touted
- 3 Sanders herself didn’t participate in the audit, nor did the lectern’s vendors
- 4 No evidence state party planned to reimburse state before FOIA request
- 5 One Arkansas vendor contacted and quoted a far lower lectern price
“The information presented in the report validates the governor’s office’s consistent statement that we adhered to the law, and the state was completely reimbursed with private funds for the podium, without any expense to the taxpayers,” stated Alexa Henning, spokesperson for Sanders.
Last year, a Republican state senator initiated an investigation in response to the lectern’s exorbitant price, which garnered nationwide attention and even drew a joke from late-night host Jimmy Kimmel.
The discovery of the purchase occurred when Matt Campbell, an attorney from Little Rock and a progressive blogger, raised awareness about Sanders’ office using a state-issued credit card in June 2023. The payment, amounting to $19,029.25, was made to Beckett Events, a boutique event planning company with close ties to the governor.
Lawmakers grilled Sanders’ staff about the findings of the audit during a lengthy three-hour hearing at the state Capitol on Tuesday. The report had been submitted to prosecuting attorneys the day before, on Monday.
During the hearing, Republican state Rep. Julie Mayberry expressed disappointment that the lectern was not brought for display, stating, “I was really hoping that you all would have brought the lectern with you today so we could see it. We all can agree that $19,000 was spent on an item and no one has really seen it.”
According to Judd Deere, Sanders’ deputy chief of staff, she intends to use the lectern now that the audit is finished. Previously, she had refrained from using it to avoid any distractions.
In the audit report, seven “areas of noncompliance” were identified where the governor’s office may have violated state laws on purchasing, state property, and government records. However, Deere stated that no members of the governor’s staff were disciplined for their actions, and he also emphasized that they should not be.
So, what comes next for the dispute that has been dubbed #LecternGate?
Arkansas’ Republican Attorney General, Tim Griffin, has caused outrage among critics by stating that he will not pursue charges against the governor or other executive branch officials. According to Griffin, state purchasing laws only apply to state agencies, not to these officials.
Will Jones, the prosecuting attorney for the 6th Judicial District in Little Rock, would likely be responsible for pursuing any potential criminal charges.
According to Jones, his office is currently evaluating the audit and treating it like any other file review they receive.
Sarah Sanders, a former White House official under the Trump administration and daughter of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, has garnered attention as a promising figure within the Republican Party.
In response to the findings, she adamantly dismissed them and took to social media this week to share a 20-second video edit of the lectern, captioned with the words “COME AND TAKE IT.”
The audit yielded several important findings. Here are the key takeaways:
Potential violations include tampering with public records
Auditors discovered seven instances where the governor’s office potentially violated state laws. One example was when a staff member from the governor’s office shredded the bill of lading for the lectern, which contained important shipment details and was supposed to be kept for record-keeping purposes. This action could be seen as a breach of document retention laws.
During the interviews, they were informed that the shredding had occurred unintentionally.
According to auditors, the governor’s deputy chief of staff instructed an executive assistant to add handwritten notes stating “to be reimbursed” on two invoices. This occurred after Campbell, the blogger, requested documents related to the purchase of the lectern through a Freedom of Information Act request. It was only after Campbell brought attention to the issue that state Republicans eventually repaid the cost of the lectern.
The audit revealed several potential violations of budgeting and accounting laws. One of the violations involved applying the purchase to operating expenses, which is against state law. The law prohibits the expensing of equipment that should be capitalized. Additionally, the lectern was paid for before it was delivered, which is another violation.
The governor’s office also neglected to inform a state agency about the delivery of the lectern, as required. Additionally, they failed to create a business expense justification statement on the day of its purchase.
According to Sanders, the purchase of the lectern “followed the standard protocol in our office.”
Lectern has no electronic components, despite special features touted
Sanders faced criticism last year for the cost of the lectern compared to other similar furniture and equipment. However, she defended the purchase, explaining that it was custom-made to accommodate her height and designed to maximize sound quality. Additionally, the lectern was equipped with components that allowed multiple media outlets to plug in simultaneously.
According to auditors, the lectern does not have a microphone or any electronic components.
They said that it does indeed include a light.
The total cost breakdown in the report is as follows: $11,575 for the lectern, $2,500 for consulting fees, $2,200 for a travel case, $1,225 for freight shipping of the lectern, $975 for freight shipping of the travel case, and $554 for a credit card processing fee.
The report did not mention the $2,500 consulting fee, but it caused a stir on social media when combined with the revelation that the governor’s office was contemplating returning the lectern due to its incorrect height.
The podium’s total cost of $19,000 is significantly higher than what could be obtained through regular retail channels. According to one retailer, their lecterns typically sell for about $7,000. Additionally, two political sources, who have experience in producing podiums and are familiar with the associated costs, have informed ABC News that $19,029.25 is more than what they would have charged or spent on acquiring a podium.
Sanders herself didn’t participate in the audit, nor did the lectern’s vendors
According to the audit report, both Sanders and the lectern vendors did not cooperate with the investigation, despite Sanders’ previous statement expressing her willingness to welcome the audit.
According to the audit report, auditors made several attempts to contact Virginia Beckett and Hannah Stone from Beckett Events through telephone, certified mail, and email, but they did not respond. The report also mentioned that Miller’s Presentation Furniture, the New York-based manufacturer of the lectern, did not respond to the auditors’ attempts to contact them.
Beckett and Stone had previously been contracted by Sanders’ office to assist with the pre-event preparations for her inauguration as governor and the 2023 GOP response to the State of the Union address. Additionally, they were present at the Paris Air Show in June of last year, coinciding with Sanders’ attendance. It was during this month that the lectern in question was acquired.
During their investigation, auditors sought assistance from Sanders’ office to contact the vendors. On Tuesday, the governor’s office’s chief legal counsel informed lawmakers that she had sent two emails to Beckett Events.
In the future, the governor’s aide announced on Tuesday that she has no intention of utilizing the vendors once more.
ABC News’ request for comment went unanswered by both vendors.
No evidence state party planned to reimburse state before FOIA request
The state’s Republican Party reimbursed Campbell for the five-figure purchase with taxpayer dollars only after he inquired about it. Auditors found that there was no indication that the governor’s office had requested reimbursement for the cost of the podium and road case prior to Campbell’s requests.
According to Sanders’ spokesperson, they clarified last fall that the use of a state credit card for the purchase was simply an accounting error.
During the hearing on Tuesday, lawmakers were informed by the governor’s deputy chief of staff that it was later determined that it would be more favorable for the lectern to be funded by private means through the state Republican Party.
According to Deere, the funds that were initially allocated for the purchase of the item were redirected. The decision was made to utilize private funds raised by the governor to reimburse the state instead. Deere emphasized that no taxpayer money was used for this purchase and therefore, it is not considered a mistake.
The governor’s office had also requested approval to raise the spending limit on the state credit card before purchasing the lectern, rather than having the Arkansas Republican Party handle the purchase themselves.
One Arkansas vendor contacted and quoted a far lower lectern price
In March 2023, an employee reached out to an audio and visual equipment dealer based in Arkansas. They obtained price quotes for podiums priced at $1,500, lighting systems priced at $1,000, and sound systems priced at $3,000, according to auditors’ findings.
The auditors were unable to determine the reasonableness of the podium’s cost because of the custom specifications, lack of vendor responses, and lack of documentation. However, they did suggest that the price of the podium was high compared to similar-style lecterns available in the market.
According to the report, it is worth mentioning that you can find similar falcon style podiums from online vendors starting at around $7,000. However, the custom falcon podium mentioned in the report was priced at $11,575.
Lawmakers from both the Democratic and Republican parties in Arkansas have expressed skepticism about the lectern’s worth.
“I don’t believe the lectern is worth $19,000 or $11,500,” expressed Republican state Senator John Payton on Tuesday. “However, I do think there’s a valuable lesson to be learned here, one that goes beyond just monetary value. It’s important for us to acknowledge that this incident was a result of poor judgment and carelessness.”
