But oversight committees or whatever? Good luck with that.
It’s almost impossible to verify those tickets weren’t used. Even if they can demonstrate they were someplace else the entire night- those tickets could have been given to friends or family. Or scalped, or any other sort of thing.
Even if they didn’t use them, they’re still a hook because of how it appears. Once somebody receives free stuff, in what is obviously a quid pro quo, any moral integrity is lost.