Aunt Lydia Accused Of Faking Receipt For $19K Podium

The Arkansas Times reports:

An anonymous former state employee came forward Friday claiming to have evidence that the Arkansas governor’s office doctored documents and unlawfully withheld financial records that should have been made public under the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA.

Attorney Tom Mars, who is representing the whistleblower, sent a letter today to Sen. Jimmy Hickey (R-Texarkana) offering to have his client speak to auditors. Hickey yesterday requested that Legislative Audit, a nonpartisan agency independent from the executive branch, look into what’s come to be known as “podiumgate.”

The controversy concerns the $19,000 purchase of a lectern (or podium) by the governor’s office from an out-of-state events company earlier this year, as well as Gov. Sarah Sanders’ successful efforts to newly block access to certain governmental records.

Read the full article. As I reported on Friday, some believe Sanders invented the $19,000 purchase to cover the cost of a trip to Paris with two of her girlfriends, one of whom was involved in Stop The Steal. The irony. When questions were raised, the state GOP quickly stepped in to pay the bill.