WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government's watchdog agency said Thursday a White House office violated federal law in withholding security assistance to Ukraine.
The Government Accountability Office said in a report that the Office of Management and Budget violated the law in holding up the aid. The freeze is at the center of the impeachment of President Donald Trump.
The independent agency, which reports to Congress, said OMB violated the Impoundment Control Act in delaying the security assistance Congress authorized for Ukraine for “policy reasons,” rather than technical budgetary needs.
“Faithful execution of the law does not permit the President to substitute his own policy priorities for those that Congress has enacted into law,” wrote the agency's general counsel, Thomas Armstrong, in the report.
OMB has argued the hold was appropriate and necessary.
“We disagree with GAO's opinion. OMB uses its apportionment authority to ensure taxpayer dollars are properly spent consistent with the President's priorities and with the law," said OMB spokeswoman Rachel Semmel.
Trump was impeached last month on charges of abusing his power for pressuring Ukraine to investigate Democratic rivals, as he was withholding the aid, and for obstructing Congress' ensuing probe. The Senate is set to begin its trial on Thursday.
The world's number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 has surpassed 40 million.
Oregon Governor, Kate Brown, joined Cheddar to discuss the state's 20 plus years of voting-by-mail. Brown assures that the process is safe and secure.
A trio of scientists is championing a controversial alternative to coronavirus lockdowns in a 500-word document called the Great Barrington Declaration, which is stirring up significant backlash from other public health experts.
President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden showed striking differences in temperament and views in dueling televised town halls.
Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris is suspending in-person events until Monday after two people associated with the campaign tested positive for the coronavirus.
Amy Coney Barrett has said repeatedly at her confirmation hearings that she’d be her own judge if she’s confirmed to the Supreme Court.
Facing public skepticism about rushed COVID-19 vaccines, U.S. health officials are planning an extra layer of safety scrutiny for the first people vaccinated when shots become available.
Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett has spent a long day batting back Democrats' tough questioning at her Senate confirmation hearings.
Al Harington, founder of Viola Cannabis and former NBA player, joined Cheddar to discuss what a Biden/Harris administration would mean for the cannabis industry.
The Federal Reserve juicing money into local budgets through the Municipal Liquidy Facility was unprecedented, but a growing number of advocates for a more progressive, proactive Fed, is that it didn't go far enough.
