Ken Ard's Lies and the Truth Behind Those Lies
Lie: Ken Ard put on his resume that he attended Wofford College (He attended Wofford for a Summer School semester when he was 22. He attended Francis Marion when he was 18 and didn’t last long but never listed it.)
Fact: Ken Ard never graduated from college.
Lie: Ken Ard told the people of South Carolina he never voted to give himself a raise while on Florence County Council.
Fact: He did indeed (vote) to give himself a raise.
Lie: Ken Ard said he never told Corey Hutchins of the Free Times “I’ve got a vast amount of my personal wealth tied up in this campaign and I’m just trying to recoup as much of that as I can.”
Fact: Corey Hutchins released audio recordings with proof Ard gave him that quote.
Lie: Ken Ard told Ethic Commission investigators that he had reimbursed his campaign account for his purchase of $168 SEC Championship tickets.
Fact: His ethics reports do not reflect this claim.
Lie: Ken Ard stated that a $722.33 and $577.96 lodging charge in Columbia and Charleston (respectively) were campaign related, however, he failed to provide details of how or why.
Fact: His ethics reports contain no contributions from anyone in Charleston or Columbia at this time.
Lie: Ken Ard claimed he traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with Senator Lindsey Graham to discuss economic development; costing more than $2,500.
Fact: Ard never requested a meeting during his trip with Senator Graham’s office and in fact, Graham was out of town at the time. However, Ard brought his entire family along for the trip and put all the expenses on his campaign credit card.
Lie: Ken Ard claimed he spent $800 on an inaugural dress for his wife.
Fact: Receipts show Ard used his campaign credit card to purchase a ladies jacket for $484.00 and a ladies skirt for $256.00. Tammy Ard did not wear these during the inauguration.
Lie: Ken Ard claimed he purchased “computers and other office equipment” at Best Buy.
Fact: Investigators found that he really purchased a Playstation 3 ($324.99) a 46-inch Sony Flat Screen Television ($974.99), an iPod Touch 8G ($229.99), an iPod charger ($15.99), an iPod case ($8.99), a set of Sony Earbud Headphones ($14.99), among other expenses.
Lie: Ken Ard never disclosed a purchase at Half Moon Outfitters.
Fact: Investigators found that he purchased shoes, jackets, pants, shirts and boots.
Lie: Ken Ard never disclosed a purchase at Talbots
Fact: Investigators found that he purchased one pair of ladies black/multi tweed pants ($119.00), one ladies red turtleneck ($50.50), one ladies pink turtleneck ($44.99) and one pair of ladies black corduroy pants ($69.50).
Fact: Ken Ard never graduated from college.
Lie: Ken Ard told the people of South Carolina he never voted to give himself a raise while on Florence County Council.
Fact: He did indeed (vote) to give himself a raise.
Lie: Ken Ard said he never told Corey Hutchins of the Free Times “I’ve got a vast amount of my personal wealth tied up in this campaign and I’m just trying to recoup as much of that as I can.”
Fact: Corey Hutchins released audio recordings with proof Ard gave him that quote.
Lie: Ken Ard told Ethic Commission investigators that he had reimbursed his campaign account for his purchase of $168 SEC Championship tickets.
Fact: His ethics reports do not reflect this claim.
Lie: Ken Ard stated that a $722.33 and $577.96 lodging charge in Columbia and Charleston (respectively) were campaign related, however, he failed to provide details of how or why.
Fact: His ethics reports contain no contributions from anyone in Charleston or Columbia at this time.
Lie: Ken Ard claimed he traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with Senator Lindsey Graham to discuss economic development; costing more than $2,500.
Fact: Ard never requested a meeting during his trip with Senator Graham’s office and in fact, Graham was out of town at the time. However, Ard brought his entire family along for the trip and put all the expenses on his campaign credit card.
Lie: Ken Ard claimed he spent $800 on an inaugural dress for his wife.
Fact: Receipts show Ard used his campaign credit card to purchase a ladies jacket for $484.00 and a ladies skirt for $256.00. Tammy Ard did not wear these during the inauguration.
Lie: Ken Ard claimed he purchased “computers and other office equipment” at Best Buy.
Fact: Investigators found that he really purchased a Playstation 3 ($324.99) a 46-inch Sony Flat Screen Television ($974.99), an iPod Touch 8G ($229.99), an iPod charger ($15.99), an iPod case ($8.99), a set of Sony Earbud Headphones ($14.99), among other expenses.
Lie: Ken Ard never disclosed a purchase at Half Moon Outfitters.
Fact: Investigators found that he purchased shoes, jackets, pants, shirts and boots.
Lie: Ken Ard never disclosed a purchase at Talbots
Fact: Investigators found that he purchased one pair of ladies black/multi tweed pants ($119.00), one ladies red turtleneck ($50.50), one ladies pink turtleneck ($44.99) and one pair of ladies black corduroy pants ($69.50).
