On February 27, 2018, it was reported that the

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the Secretary of Housing and Urb ...

had spent $31,561 on a set of

dining room A dining room is a room (architecture), room for eating, consuming food. In modern times it is usually adjacent to the kitchen for convenience in serving, although in medieval times it was often on an entirely different floor level. Historically ...

furniture Furniture refers to movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating (e.g., stools, chairs, and sofas), eating (tables), storing items, eating and/or working with an item, and sleeping (e.g., beds and hammocks). Fu ...

for the office of

HUD secretary The United States secretary of housing and urban development (or HUD secretary) is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the President of the United States, president's United States Cabinet, Cabi ...

Ben Carson Benjamin Solomon Carson Sr. (born September 18, 1951) is an American retired neurosurgeon and politician who served as the 17th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development from 2017 to 2021. A pioneer in the field of neurosurgery, he ...

in late 2017, in apparent violation of federal law requiring Congressional approval for department head office redecoration costs exceeding $5,000. Emails released under the

Freedom of Information Act Freedom of Information Act may refer to the following legislations in different jurisdictions which mandate the national government to disclose certain data to the general public upon request: * Freedom of Information Act 1982, the Australian act * ...

(FOIA) contradicted initial agency statements that the Secretary was uninvolved in the purchase decision, which took place amid extensive proposed budget cuts at that agency, affecting programs benefiting the poor and elderly. Media coverage of the purchase led to its cancellation. Inquiries into the propriety of the purchase were made by the

Office of Special Counsel The United States Office of Special Counsel (OSC) is a permanent independent federal investigative and prosecutorial agency whose basic legislative authority comes from four federal statutes: the Civil Service Reform Act, the Whistleblower Prot ...

and

House Oversight Committee The Committee on Oversight and Reform is the main investigative committee of the United States House of Representatives. The committee's broad jurisdiction and legislative authority make it one of the most influential and powerful panels in the ...

. The news of the office expenditures came amid questions over Carson's son's involvement in a HUD-sponsored "listening tour". Ben Carson Jr. is a federal contractor, and HUD lawyers warned the secretary that his involvement would constitute an apparent

conflict of interest A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation in which a person or organization is involved in multiple interests, financial or otherwise, and serving one interest could involve working against another. Typically, this relates to situations i ...

in violation of federal ethics rules; in February, Secretary Carson was pressured into requesting an investigation of his son's involvement by the inspector general of HUD. HUD's inspector general cleared Carson of misconduct in September 2019.

Events

Furniture order

The custom-made furniture, ordered on December 21 from Sebree and Associates based in Carson's hometown of Baltimore, included a

mahogany Mahogany is a straight-grained, reddish-brown timber of three tropical hardwood species of the genus ''Swietenia'', indigenous to the AmericasBridgewater, Samuel (2012). ''A Natural History of Belize: Inside the Maya Forest''. Austin: Unive ...

table, ten chairs with velvet upholstery, a

sideboard A sideboard, also called a buffet, is an item of furniture traditionally used in the dining room for serving food, for displaying serving dishes, and for storage. It usually consists of a set of cabinets, or cupboards, and one or more drawers ...

, and a

hutch Hutch may refer to: Places * Hutch, Kentucky, an unincorporated community located in Bell County, Kentucky, United States * Hutchinson, Kansas ("Hutch"), a city in Kansas, United States * Hutchinson, Minnesota ("Hutch"), a city in Minnesota, U ...

. According to purchase documents and the dealer, the table pedestals featured "hand applied

ebonized Ebonising is a process for darkening wood, giving it an appearance similar to ebony, hence the name. It is particularly used for pianos and fine furniture. History While little record exists of who invented ebonizing, it was popular among the upp ...

inlay with bell flowers topped by hand carved scrolls and a fluted column." Delivery was scheduled for May 2018.

Internal whistleblowing

In November 2017, Helen G. Foster, former chief administrative officer at HUD, filed a

whistleblower A whistleblower (also written as whistle-blower or whistle blower) is a person, often an employee, who reveals information about activity within a private or public organization that is deemed illegal, immoral, illicit, unsafe or fraudulent. Whi ...

complaint with the Office of Special Counsel, alleging that she had been demoted and transferred as retaliation after refusing to secure funding for the redecoration of the Secretary's office, as well as for exposing a $10million budget shortfall, and for protesting being barred from handling certain FOIA requests. Foster stated that, beginning prior to Carson's confirmation in March, she had been repeatedly pressured by Carson's wife

Candy Carson Lacena "Candy" Carson (née Rustin; born August 19, 1953) is an American author and businesswoman. She is married to former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and retired neurosurgeon Benjamin Carson and co-founded the Carson Scholars F ...

, through interim secretary Craig Clemmensen, to secure the funding in violation of the law. After conferring with HUD's acting assistant chief financial officer for budget on February 13, Foster claimed to have sent HUD officials the text of the

Antideficiency Act The Antideficiency Act (ADA) () is legislation enacted by the United States Congress to prevent the incurring of obligations or the making of expenditures (outlays) in excess of amounts available in appropriations or funds. The law was initially e ...

requiring Congressional approval of the purchase. She reported being told "$5,000 will not even buy a decent chair." A February 22 memo from HUD's chief financial officer reiterated the rules surrounding redecoration costs, as well as costs associated with securing Secretary Carson's home.

Public statements from HUD officials

On February 27, following initial media reports, HUD spokesman Raffi Williams initially claimed that HUD had spent only $3,200 for new blinds for the secretary and deputy secretary's offices, and that the chairs then in the secretary's office had come from the basement of the HUD building. That same day, the organization American Oversight sued HUD to determine how much money had actually been spent on office redecoration. On the evening of February 28, Carson and his wife denied any wrongdoing via Twitter. Carson claimed to be "as surprised as anyone" about the purchase. Williams claimed that Secretary Carson and his wife had not requested the new table and were unaware of its purchase, and that the purchasing decision was made by career staffers, but that the secretary did not believe the cost to be excessive, and did not intend to return the items. However, internal emails released on March 14 – under a FOIA request made by American Oversight – contradicted those claims, with one message from a career staffer to Carson's assistant referring to "printouts of the furniture the Secretary and Mrs. Carson picked out". Presented with the discrepancy, Williams acknowledged that "when presented with options by professional staff, Mrs. Carson participated in the selection of specific styles." Williams claimed that Congressional approval was not sought for the purchase because it addressed a "building-wide need", though the dining set would be located in Carson's personal suite. He also claimed that Foster's reassignment was part of a normal rotation. On March 1, HUD confirmed that Carson had requested the furniture order be cancelled. HUD announced on March 15 that its chief financial officer Irving Dennis would lead a task force to combat "waste, fraud and abuse" at the agency. On March 19, Carson testified before the

House Appropriations Committee The United States House Committee on Appropriations is a committee of the United States House of Representatives that is responsible for passing appropriation bills along with its Senate counterpart. The bills passed by the Appropriations Commi ...

, claiming that he left the purchasing decision to his wife, and that they expressed concerns to staff over the cost. He denied that the furniture constituted a decorating expense, citing apparent safety concerns with the state of the old furniture, and he denied knowing about whistleblower Helen Foster. Congressman David Price, Democrat from North Carolina and ranking member of the committee, called the purchase one of several "major ethical lapses" at HUD, citing "failure to control funds and provide legally required notifications to Congress", "apparently false public statements that intended to obscure the truth about the secretary's involvement", and "the reassignment of the whistleblower who brought these problems to the public's attention."

Government investigations

Following her initial complaint, Helen Foster was contacted for an interview with the Office of Special Counsel, which has 120 days from the date of the complaint to determine whether it will launch an official investigation. Foster's lawyer, Joe Kaplan, said the OSC could determine to move forward as quickly as the week of March 1.

Trey Gowdy Harold Watson "Trey" Gowdy III (born August 22, 1964) is an American television news personality, former politician, and former federal prosecutor who served as the U.S. representative for from 2011 to 2019. His district included much of the Up ...

, Republican chairman of the

, requested records relating to HUD's furniture purchases in 2017, to "determine whether HUD adhered to the applicable spending limitations", as well as documentation relating to Helen Foster's claims of retaliation. Gowdy set a deadline of March 14 for the delivery of these documents. In May 2019, the

Government Accountability Office The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is a legislative branch government agency that provides auditing, evaluative, and investigative services for the United States Congress. It is the supreme audit institution of the federal govern ...

's general counsel confirmed to Congress that HUD broke the law when it ordered the dining set and a new dishwasher and water treatment system, specifically violating section 710 of the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Acts of 2016 and 2017, and the Antideficiency Act. On September 12, 2019, HUD's inspector general released a report clearing Carson of misconduct.

Other reactions

The

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

was reportedly "furious" about negative stories surrounding spending at HUD, and anonymous sources reported the White House was taking a more active role to address the matter. Editorials strongly criticized HUD's purchases and Carson's reaction. '' Vanity Fair'' called Carson's claimed lack of awareness of the purchase "truly amazing". ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local and regional news, events, issues, people, and industries. Founded in 1837, it is currently owned by Tr ...

'' called the scandal part of a pattern in which Trump administration officials "shamelessly gamed the system for their personal benefit". Late-night comedians mocked the purchase and HUD's response.

Trevor Noah Trevor Noah (born 20 February 1984) is a South African-born comedian, writer, producer, political commentator, actor, and former television host. He was the host of ''The Daily Show'', an American late-night talk show and satirical news progra ...

of ''

The Daily Show ''The Daily Show'' is an American late-night talk and satirical news television program. It airs each Monday through Thursday on Comedy Central with release shortly after on Paramount+. ''The Daily Show'' draws its comedy and satire form from ...

'' said that valuing a good chair at $5,000 would make Carson "the worst '' Price Is Right'' contestant", and suggested the department use the money to build low-income housing instead, in accordance with its mission. '' Late Night'' host

Seth Meyers Seth Adam Meyers (born December 28, 1973) is an American comedian, writer, producer, actor, and television host. He hosts ''Late Night with Seth Meyers'', a late-night talk show on NBC. Prior to that, he was a cast member and head writer for NBC ...

said of Carson that "the man loves furniture. Based on his personality he’s probably been mistaken for furniture."

References

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The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

, date=February 27, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Marsh, first1=Rene, title='$5,000 will not even buy a decent chair': HUD staffer files complaint over Ben Carson office redecoration, url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/27/politics/ben-carson-office-furniture-whistleblower/index.html, access-date=1 March 2018, publisher=

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

, date=February 27, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Marsh, first1=Rene, last2=Levitt, first2=Ross, title=See HUD's $31,000 mahogany dining set, url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/28/politics/hud-31000-dining-set/index.html, access-date=1 March 2018, publisher=

, date=February 28, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Marsh, first1=Rene, last2=Wallace, first2=Gregory, title=First on CNN: Emails show Ben, Candy Carson selected $31,000 dining set, url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/14/politics/emails-ben-candy-carson-dining-set/index.html, access-date=14 March 2018, publisher=

, date=March 14, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Ebbs, first1=Stephanie, title=HUD spent $31,000 on new dining set for Ben Carson's office suite, url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hud-spent-31000-dining-set-ben-carsons-office/story?id=53391444, access-date=1 March 2018, work=

ABC News ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...

, date=February 27, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Ebbs, first1=Stephanie, title=Carson contends he and his wife complained about $31,000 furniture cost, url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/carson-contends-wife-complained-31000-furniture-cost/story?id=53873437, access-date=20 March 2018, work=

, date=March 20, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Levin, first1=Bess, title=Ben Carson Thinks His $31,000 Office Redesign Was Totally Reasonable, url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2018/02/ben-carson-thinks-31000-dollar-office-redesign-was-totally-reasonable, access-date=1 March 2018, work= Vanity Fair, date=February 28, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Mangan, first1=Dan, title=White House 'looking into' $31,561 dining room set purchase under HUD Secretary Ben Carson, url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/15/hud-secretary-ben-carson-appoints-financial-watchdog.html, access-date=15 March 2018, publisher=

CNBC CNBC (formerly Consumer News and Business Channel) is an American basic cable business news channel. It provides business news programming on weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Eastern Time, while broadcasting talk sho ...

, date=March 15, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Shuham, first1=Matt, title=House Oversight Committee Asks Carson For Records On $30,000 Office Furniture, url=https://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/house-oversight-committee-asks-carson-for-records-on-30000-office-furniture, access-date=1 March 2018, work=

Talking Points Memo ''Talking Points Memo'' (''TPM'') is a liberal political news and opinion website created and run by Josh Marshall that debuted on November 12, 2000. The name is a reference to the memo (short list) consisting of the issues (points) discussed by ...

, date=March 1, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Wfirst1=Tolly, title=Late Night Blasts Ben Carson's $31,000 HUD Office Dining Set, url=http://www.vulture.com/2018/03/late-night-blasts-ben-carsons-usd31-000-hud-office-dining-set.html, access-date=1 March 2018, work= Vulture.com, date=March 1, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Swaine, first1=Jon, last2=Jacobs, first2=Ben, title=US official: I was demoted for rejecting Ben Carson's costly office revamp, url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/feb/27/hud-ben-carson-office-redecoration-trump-appointee, access-date=1 March 2018, work=

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

, date=February 27, 2018 {{cite news, last1=Ebbs, first1=Stephanie, title=Ben Carson asks HUD to cancel order for $31,000 dining set, url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/ben-carson-asks-hud-cancel-order-31000-dining/story?id=53440630, access-date=1 March 2018, work=

, date=March 1, 2018 {{cite tweet , user=RealBenCarson , number=969040189099298817 , date=February 28, 2018 , title=Thank you to so many who have expressed concern for me and my family over the latest accusations. Rest assured that there has been no dishonesty or wrongdoing by us. All the numbers and evidence are being gathered and a full disclosure is forthcoming. 1/2 {{cite news, last1=Fang, first1=Marina, title=Ben Carson Cancels $31,000 Furniture Order After Ethics Questions, url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ben-carson-31000-dining-set_us_5a984029e4b0479c025059ae, access-date=1 March 2018, work=

HuffPost ''HuffPost'' (formerly ''The Huffington Post'' until 2017 and sometimes abbreviated ''HuffPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and ...

, date=March 1, 2018 2018 in American politics 2018 scandals Cabinet scandals in the United States February 2018 events in the United States March 2018 events in the United States Trump administration controversies United States Department of Housing and Urban Development 2018 controversies in the United States Furniture