Oct 30 2008
Merritt Hits Mary Easley on Wasteful Expenditures
RALEIGH - State Auditor Les Merritt said this morning that trips to France, Russia and Estonia by First Lady Mary Easley and others included “unreasonable and excessive expenses,” including a taxpayer-funded $332 lunchtime caviar cocktail.
Taxpayers picked up hundreds of dollars in alcohol purchases, against state policy. They paid for ballet tickets, and an executive assistant to Easley billed the state $227 dollars for a linen jacket.
Merritt found that the trips to France and Russia — which cost a total of $110,000 — were of questionable value to taxpayers.
Les Merritt is about the only thing standing between the corruption in Raleigh and the taxpayers. If the folks of North Carolina do not reelect him on Tuesday they will be doing an enormous disservice to themselves.
