Posted on 01/16/2020 7:56:49 AM PST by lowbridge
The Trump administration’s decision to freeze the release of security assistance to Ukraine last year violated federal law, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) said in a report Thursday.
The independent watchdog said the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) withheld the appropriated funds last summer, not as a programmatic delay but in order to advance the president’s own agenda.
Doing so, the watchdog concluded, violates the Impoundment Control Act, a law that governs Congress's role in the federal budget process.
“Faithful execution of the law does not permit the President to substitute his own policy priorities for those that Congress has enacted into law,” the report says. “OMB withheld funds for a policy reason, which is not permitted under the Impoundment Control Act (ICA). ... Therefore, we conclude that OMB violated the ICA.”
The decision by the White House to withhold nearly $400 million in U.S. aid to Kyiv as the country fights pro-Russia separatists is at the center of impeachment proceedings in Congress against President Trump.
(Excerpt) Read more at thehill.com ...
he independent watchdog said the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) withheld the appropriated funds last summer, not as a programmatic delay but in order to advance the president’s own agenda.
The article might as well replace GOA with “House Democrats”.
The Dems have their smoking gun. This will be the non-stop news today and into the Trial. Will allow those squishy republicans cover to allow for more witnesses and more evidence, and adding to the AOI, informally or have the house vote on another resolution.
Unfortunately, this is a BIG deal.
Since when has the GAO become a legal “fact-finder?”
Impoundment Control Act of 1974 has never been tried in the SCOTUS, IIRC..............
What law?
USC Title, please, so we can read it.
The independent watchdog
No it is not. Right on time 5 days before the trial. But yeah an independent watchdog. Where is the law that we have to give money to Ukraine?
Psssst. The president is allowed to do this to meet his agenda. His only requirement is that he release the funds before a cutoff date, which he did. The rest is partisan irrelevance.
Is that an assumption, hearsay, or an opinion? Unless they have it is writing, it is meaningless.
Unbelievable. This is fundamentally incorrect. Congress can authorize money. The Executive is NOT obligated to spend it.
This is all deep state crap agitprop anyway.
They just will not back off. They do not understand the consequences.
Pelosi’s on the news ‘now’ about this of course....”tangled web to deceive’...
> mpoundment Control Act of 1974 has never been tried in the
> SCOTUS, IIRC..............
Ah! They have a law that has never in my lifetime every been enforced.
Presidents have violated this “law” with impunity since its passage.
However, since the money was dispensed within the time period allotted, Trump cannot be in violation of this law.
A completely moot argument.
Funny, I do not find the GAO ruled Biden broke laws when he threaten to with hold $1 Billion Dollars...… but, that’s just Joe.....
Whatever, troll.
And the WAPO is having an orgasm about this.
"Faithful exection of the law?" What a joke. At most, Trump only delayed those payments for a couple of months. Contrast that with Obama's order not to enforce immigration law, and concurrent grant of benefits to people who were in the country illegally. And not a peep from the Dems, the media, or the GAO.
OMG!! This is Hugh!!
The same Deep State that is trying to run a coup d’etat has found that their coup is legal and the President isn’t.
OH NOES!!!
Put differently, same Deep State, different channel.
Billions in state department cash is piling up to go to the laundry and come back to the Beltway clean as snow. Trump is standing in the way of the delivery trucks. The deep state cleaning operation needs Trump gone.
The GAO is now totally exposed as being a partisan hack organization.
The delayed funds were released prior to cut off date — how can that be in violation of some imaginary law?
Furthermore, the President is fully within his right to consider protecting tax payer money from being used for foreign corrupt purposes.
This is more about protecting the DS foreign aid political payoff gravy train that has gone on far too long.
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