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 Republican-led Michigan House has refused to extend the state’s coronavirus emergency declaration. It also voted Thursday to authorize a lawsuit challenging Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s authority and actions to combat the pandemic. The step came as hundreds of conservative activists returned to the Capitol to denounce Whitmer’s stay-at-home measure.
A crush of dismal data about the economy helped send markets lower Thursday, a meek ending to a historic, juggernaut month for stocks.
A shortage of personal protective equipment is a critical problem for frontline medical workers and one of the toughest issues the organization is facing, said Thomas Tighe, CEO of Direct Relief.
NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, in partnership with the City Council, announced his commitment to closing off up to 100 miles of streets to make more space for city dwellers during the coronavirus pandemic.
Morgan Ortagus, a State Department spokesperson, said the purpose of demanding more information and access from China was to "answer fundamental questions" about the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Federal Reserve says it is expanding a major lending program to provide support for businesses struggling to cope with the economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Sarah Cooper, the performer behind the viral video, talked to Cheddar Wednesday about why she chose to riff on the POTUS.
Stocks charged higher around the world Wednesday following an encouraging report on a possible treatment for COVID-19.
The Federal Reserve says it will keep its key short-term interest rate near zero for the foreseeable future as part of its extraordinary efforts to bolster an economy that is sinking into its worst crisis since the 1930s.
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) on Wednesday announced the results of a study looking into a potential COVID-19 treatment that it says shows promise.
