Virginia television station WWBT/NBC12 is reporting that days before President Barack Obama's visit to Chesterfield, VA, a truck carrying the presidential podium, audio gear, and the presidential teleprompter was stolen from a hotel parking lot.

The unmarked white box truck was recovered on Monday, and investigators are still looking into whether the thieves knew what they were stealing.

A spokesperson for the Defense Information Systems Agency told the station: "No classified or sensitive information was in the vehicle. We take incidents such as this very seriously and a formal investigation is continuing."

Obama's reliance on his teleprompter has become something of a joke in Washington, earning it the nickname TOTUS — for Teleprompter of the United States — and several parody Twitter accounts and blogs.

[via POLITICO]