Michigan official dressed as Mickey Mouse critical of Florida junket for county employees

Associated Press

Genesee County Clerk-Register John Gleason, center, alleges that a recent trip county employees took to the Disney Institute in Florida was improper so he dressed up like Mickey Mouse to prove his point on Feb. 20, 2019, in Flint, Mich. (Jake May/MLive.com/The Flint Journal via AP)

FLINT, Mich.— A county official in Michigan dressed as Mickey Mouse to help draw attention to what he describes as wasteful spending on a Florida trip for employee training.

Genesee County Clerk-Register John Gleason held a news conference Wednesday with play money and a suitcase as props while a woman dressed as Minnie Mouse stood behind him.

He says spending about $25,000 to send three employees to the Disney Institute was "another junket."

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County Board Coordinator Josh Freeman, who was among the attendees this month, says the expense was justified after about a decade of little spending on employee development and training. WJRT-TV reports the board president also defended the travel.

The Flint Journal reports commissioners approved the travel and lessons learned in Florida are to be shared with other county employees.