Report: Leaked Emails Show Carson Chose $31,000 Dining Set

The expensive tastes of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson are under renewed scrutiny after leaked emails appeared to show he was personally involved in choosing a wildly expensive furniture set for his office’s dining room—a claim that he previously denied. An email from August seen by CNN, sent by department staffer to Carson’s assistant, had the subject line “Secretary’s dining room set needed,” and refers to “printouts of the furniture the Secretary and Mrs. Carson picked out.” HUD spokesperson Raffi Williams said last month that Carson and his wife had “no awareness” that the set was being purchased, with another spokesperson saying: “The secretary did not order a new table. The table was ordered by the career staffers in charge of the building.” The order was swiftly canceled after it became public knowledge, with Carson himself claiming he was “shocked” by the price of it. Presented with the new emails on Tuesday, Williams said only: “When presented with options by professional staff, Mrs. Carson participated in the selection of specific styles.”