Interior Dept spent $139K on new doors for Zinke’s office: report

The Interior Department reportedly spent $139,000 upgrading the doors in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke’s office, according to The Associated Press.

The upgrades to three sets of double doors came as part of a modernization plan ordered by career Interior staff, an Interior spokeswoman told the AP. While the spokeswoman acknowledged that the price seemed expensive, she blamed the cost on purchasing and preservation rules, adding that the doors also had new security locks.

Records obtained by the AP show a Maryland contractor, Conquest Solutions LLC, completed the work, which was labeled “Secretary’s Door” on a work order.

{mosads}The Sierra Club, a leading environmental group, issued a statement Thursday slamming Zinke over the report, calling him a “walking scandal.”

“Now we know that Ryan Zinke isn’t using just any door when he shuts the American people out. Like Scott Pruitt, Zinke is a walking scandal who believes he can live the life of luxury on the American taxpayer’s dime, and it’s time Trump puts a stop to it,” Sierra Club President Ethan Manuel said in the statement. “We only hope that this $139,000 door doesn’t hit Zinke on his way out.”

Zinke has come under fire for his use of government helicopters to transport himself and staffers between events and locations near Washington, D.C.

The Interior chief was also reportedly told in October he was set to be $200,000 over his travel budget for the year, according to CNN.

The report also comes after Housing Secretary Ben Carson faced criticism after the Department of Housing and Urban Development spent $31,000 on a new dining set for Carson’s office.