LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The purchase of a $19,000 lectern for the Arkansas governor is now under scrutiny, with claims that records about it have been altered. A legislative panel will review the purchase through an audit requested by a lawmaker. The lectern was purchased in June using a state credit card, and the Arkansas Republican Party reimbursed the state last month. The state’s largest newspaper, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, ran a front-page photo of the lectern after it was viewed by Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ office.
Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who served as press secretary for former President Donald Trump, is currently serving as Arkansas governor. She has welcomed the audit and dismissed the controversy surrounding the lectern’s purchase. The reimbursement for the lectern came from money raised for her inauguration, according to Sanders’ office.
The concern over the lectern goes beyond its cost, with questions raised about how Sanders’ office is spending state money. Matthew Campbell, an attorney and blogger, discovered the purchase and has sued the State Police for withholding records on Sanders’ travel and security. Campbell believes an audit is necessary to address the issue. Tom Mars, an attorney and former director of the Arkansas State Police, claims to have a client with firsthand knowledge of Sanders’ office interfering with Campbell’s open records requests. Mars alleges that the governor’s office altered an invoice related to the lectern purchase.
Hickey’s request for an audit also includes a review of all security and travel records made confidential by the law signed by Sanders. Republican Rep. Jimmy Gazaway supports the audit, citing public concern and Sanders’ own statement welcoming it.
In the midst of the controversy, Sanders’ office maintains that this is a manufactured distraction by left-wing activists and emphasizes the governor’s conservative reforms.
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