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 U.S. and Canada have agreed to temporarily close their shared border to nonessential travel. President Donald Trump made that announcement Wednesday on Twitter as the two nations work to stem the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.
Despite the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the airline industry, even as momentum for an enormous bailout package builds in the White House and on Capitol Hill, ia growing backlash has been sparked among Democratic lawmakers, consumer advocates, and antitrust experts.
Senator Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) told Cheddar’s J.D. Durkin on Tuesday,“[An airline bailout] is going to have to be a part of this immediate package
Stocks are closing solidly higher after President Donald Trump promised he's “going big” with plans to blunt the economic pain caused by the coronavirus outbreak.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said Tuesday that New Yorkers should prepare for the possibility of a “shelter-in-place” order within the next 48 hours.
Stocks are adding sharply to their gains on Wall Street after President Donald Trump and his team announced more measures to combat the coronavirus outbreak.
Stacey Cunningham, president of the New York Stock Exchange, told Cheddar on Tuesday that the markets remaining open is important during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The White House announced major moves in coordination with the Federal Reserve to mitigate economic damage from the coronavirus pandemic which has brought some industries to a near halt.
Andrew Cuomo said this morning that the expected peak of infection is 45 days out, based on a hospitalization rate of between 15 to 19 percent.
These are the headlines you Need 2 Know for Tuesday, March 17, 2020.
