Late Night Video — Chip Flowers Takes His Denial Tour to TV
Apparently The People’s Treasury has plenty of time to yak it up with the local news media. NOT to give them the records they request and even FOIA, but he can talk to them. This one is from NBC10:
(OK, apparently the embed code from NBC10 isn’t working properly. You’ll need to go over to their website to see it.)
Start with the fact that NBC10 doesn’t quite have the story (as written by the NJ) isn’t quite right:
An article in the Delaware News Journal accused state treasurer Chip Flowers of using the card for personal expenses, including large room service breakfasts while attending a conference in Alaska in September of last year. Flowers was with Erika Benner, a top Delaware deputy who stepped down after she admitted to using her state credit card to pay for New England Patriots tickets as well as car service to the game.
And then there’s this:
“Government is about integrity and knowledge,” Flowers said. “If people can’t get that knowledge and integrity from their newspaper then why have one?”
This is from a guy who has approved, disapproved, approved and then disapproved one person’s expenses in his office and then blames the Department of Finance for it all. Integrity and knowledge, really? If you can’t get integrity and knowledge from The People’s Treasury, then I think it needs to be merged with the Department of Finance. I’m the first one in line to critique the NJ, but sheesh, if Chip had had the integrity and knowledge to pay better attention to the credit card expenses of Ms. Benner, he wouldn’t be here. First he wants to make the Department of Finance the bad guy for not telling him that Benner’s credit card reconciliations were not in order and now it is the News Journal who is the bad guy because they reported the information they had — not all of the information they had requested.
I laughed out loud when this interview showed Chip’s Denali pictures with a straight face — he’s the one who claims he stayed in Anchorage, but but puts pictures of him at Denali. Which is about a 4 hour drive (without sightseeing) from Anchorage.
Tags: Bamboozled!, Chip Flowers
I should mention that I have a note saying that Chip Flowers will be on WDEL with Al Mascitti on Tuesday AM sometime in the 9AM hour. Not sure yet if that is true, but heads up if you are interested.
“Government is about integrity and knowledge,” Flowers said.
Says the biggest liar and crook in government
Hope you’re right, Cass.
I’ll be on with Al at 10, and I hope that Chip answers all the questions I have during the 9 am hour.
BTW, has anyone noticed that you can’t spell Denali without Denial?
So I really have only a superficial knowledge of this. So if someone could give my the Twitter version I’d appreciate it.
So this deputy Denner resigns over the use of the credit card for personal shit. Then she still goes on this junket. I wouldn’t think you’d travel for work once you’ve quit.
Then we find out that Flowers uses the card for personal shit and that Denner and Flowers were basically on holiday together.
Do I have it correct?
Dorian, no. This happened in 2012. Chip asked her to pay back those expenses, then he changed his mind and said those expenses were legitimate, and then got himself wrapped in the mess.
No. The junket was last year. Here is how I have it. (This is probably missing big pieces.)
– Benner discovered to have used card for personal expenses.
-Flowers says – No Biggie, she paid it back.
-Flowers then throws Benner under the bus and points fingers at Dept of finance.
-More improper card use discovered.
-Flowers says, “No bigger, and I wasn’t there.”
-Turns out he was there.
Dorian from Subaru?
Jason you forgot the part where Flowers accused Rep. Trey Paradee of being the one dating her when “the majority” of the charges were made on the state credit card.
The NJ picks up the pictures that contradict Flowers’ “we were meeting with important financial people –separately!– in Talkeetna and Anchorage” claim this morning. Don’t have time to put up a separate thread yet, but do notice this:
“Chip Flowers did not have time to go to Denali because he was too busy in Denial,” his spokeswoman did not say.
Right?
Thanks, everyone. Now I got it.
@Tommy I’m Dorian from the Wilde novel not Subaru. It’s a nom de plume. I don’t trust you people! 🙂
Listening now. God, this guy is full of spin.
I can’t wait to hear how his meeting with the NJ publisher goes. She’s brand new and a black woman. I’m guessing Chip thinks he can get her on his side.
“Let me be perfectly clear.”
Except you’re not …
The new clarification from Mr. Flowers is that he was in Denali. He stated he was in Denali, but not at the time as his Deputy. Can this situation be more absurd? I hear the Shaggy “It wasn’t me” song in my head!
Listening, too. Wish Al would ask him if the State pays dues for him to be a member of the National Association of State Treasurers. If they do, how can he say no taxpayer money was spent?!? Clearly they simply reimburse him back out of the dues he pays!
“He stated he was in Denali, but not at the time as his Deputy.”
There is clear photographic evidence to the contrary.
He also said that they did spend free time together in Alaska, he did go to Denali but that he didn’t stay in Talkeetna. “Denali and Talkeetna are two totally different places.” Talkeetna is directly outside of Denali. So full of it.
And most of the Denali Glacier tours (air ones) leave from Talkeetna.
Jason330, he said even though the pics were uploaded the same day, they weren’t taken the same day. I really feel for his staff spokesperson having to day after day read his press releases with a straight face.
Wish Al would use this opportunity to get him on the record about whether or not he was at the Patriots game the same time she was!
To begin with, my question is this: Why put personal expenses on the state credit card at all?
If Chip had personal expenses, they should have been put on his own personal credit card, period.
Secondly, his vacillation about Erika Benner’s expenses, whether approved or disapproved, indicates indecisiveness not expected of a state treasurer.
Thirdly, if Chip wishes to have meetings in his hotel room, how is this related to his reserving his room for two people?
Chip Flowers has lost my trust in his integrity.
You aren’t supposed to put personal charges on your state card. Sometimes people do make a mistake, but there were multiple charges on Ms. Benner’s card. The nub of the problem here, is that no one at the Treasury was responsible for making sure that charges were appropriate. The charges were signed off on and sent for reimbursement as though they were actual state business. The Department of Finance caught this as part of their QC process and this is when it blew up. Instead of Chip acknowledging his really big mistake here, he’s been on a mission to blame everyone else for his own lack of managerial accountability here.