Republican Sen. Tim Scott wants answers from Ben Carson on the $31,000 dining set
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Housing Secretary Ben Carson, under fire after his office ordered a $31,000 dining set, told a House panel Tuesday that he left furniture purchasing decisions to his wife. Carson said he canceled the table as soon as he learned about it. (March 20)
AP
The saga of the $31,000 dining set continues.
A day after Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson tried to distance himself from the purchase of the costly furniture, Sen. Tim Scott called on the department head to provide more answers.
Scott, a South Carolina Republican, questioned Carson’s words before a House subcommittee.
“You stated, ‘I can tell you what I did. I do not intend to be responsible for what anyone else said,'” Scott said in a Wednesday letter to the secretary. “To me, that is the definition of the buck stopping somewhere else.”
Scott asked Carson to provide answers about who was involved with the set’s purchase and whether the furniture order had actually been rescinded. He also asked Carson if he had any proof that the old set had “safety issues,” as Carson told lawmakers.
Scott’s disgruntled letter was sent a day after members of a House Appropriations subcommittee peppered Carson with questions about the $31,561 purchase of a table, chairs and hutch.
More: Ben Carson’s HUD spent $31,000 on dining room furniture for his office
The purchase has stirred controversy around Carson. As a Cabinet secretary, Carson has a $5,000 legal limit to refurnish his office. Also, HUD initially said Carson and his wife, Candy, weren’t involved in picking the furniture; documents obtained by a watchdog group showed that wasn’t the case.
During the hearing — which was meant for discussions about HUD’s proposed budget cuts — Carson said he left the table decision to his wife after being given a few different options.
“The next thing that I, quite frankly, heard about it was that this $31,000 table had been bought,†he told lawmakers.
He said he had it canceled after he found out. (Notably, the purchase order was canceled, but not until after media reports surfaced.)
“Not that we don’t need the furniture, but I thought that that was excessive,” he added.
Expect the secretary to answer more questions about the controversial table when he appears before the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee on Thursday.
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