Trump Administration Illegally Withheld Ukraine Aid, Congressional Watchdog Finds

The Trump administration illegally withheld congressionally approved U.S. aid to Ukraine in the summer of 2019, according to a congressional watchdog report released Thursday.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office, a nonpartisan agency that works for Congress, found that the Office of Management and Budget violated federal law under the direction of President Donald Trump .

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 reads in part. OMB withheld funds for a policy reason, which is not permitted under the Impoundment Control Act (ICA). The withholding was not a programmatic delay. Therefore, we conclude that OMB violated the ICA.

On Wednesday, the House of Representatives voted to send articles of impeachment against Trump to the Senate, where lawmakers will determine in an upcoming trial whether the president should be removed from office.

The two articles of impeachment abuse of power and obstruction of Congress relate to Trumps efforts to get Ukraine to publicly commit to investigating former Vice President Joe Biden , a front-runner in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary race.

Several current and former State Department officials testified during a monthslong impeachment inquiry in the House last year that the Trump administration withheld over $240 million in U.S. military aid to Ukraine as part of that pressure campaign.

Trump has claimed he did nothing wrong in asking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to investigate Biden.

The Office of Management and Budget a federal bureau within the executive office that oversees the presidents budget and the performance of federal agencies rejected GAOs findings Thursday, claiming its handling of the aid was consistent with the law.

We disagree with GAOs opinion, OMB spokeswoman Rachel Semmel told HuffPost in a statement. OMB uses its apportionment authority to ensure taxpayer dollars are properly spent consistent with the Presidents priorities and with the law.

But Democrats quickly seized on the reports conclusions.

In a news conference Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said GAOs findings reinforce the need for the Senate to call witnesses and obtain relevant documents during the impeachment trial.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), a member of the Senate committees on appropriations and budget, emphasized the troubling nature of GAOs findings.

The bombshell legal opinion from the independent [GAO] demonstrates, without a doubt, that the Trump Administration illegally withheld assistance from Ukraine, Van Hollen tweeted. The public evidence shows that the president himself ordered this illegal act.

This bombshell legal opinion from the independent @USGAO demonstrates, without a doubt, that the Trump Administration illegally withheld assistance from Ukraine and the public evidence shows that the president himself ordered this illegal act. pic.twitter.com/bkwyQ4Vk3K

Senator Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) January 16, 2020","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Senator Chris Van Hollen","author_url":"https://twitter.com/ChrisVanHollen","cache_age":86400,"description":"This bombshell legal opinion from the independent @USGAO demonstrates, without a doubt, that the Trump Administration illegally withheld assistance from Ukraine and the public evidence shows that the president himself ordered this illegal act. pic.twitter.com/bkwyQ4Vk3K Senator Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) January 16, 2020\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":2048,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EOaSPFwWoAAja7L.jpg:large","thumbnail_width":1577,"title":"Senator Chris Van Hollen on Twitter","type":"rich","url":"https://twitter.com/ChrisVanHollen/status/1217821544245841923","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"mobile","editionInfo":{"id":"us","name":"U.S.","link":"https://action.news","locale":"en_US"},"originalEdition":"us","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"5e207d07c5b63211760f626f","entryPermalink":"https://action.news/entry/us-gao-trump-ukraine-aid-withheld-illegally_n_5e207d07c5b63211760f626f","entryTagsList":"donald-trump,ukraine,office-of-management-and-budget,@developing","sectionSlug":"politics","deptSlug":"politics-news","sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"us-news,world-news","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"us.politics","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc111dcf87c2cd2f5d8bf","overrides":{"front_page_top_videos":{"desktop":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","mobileweb":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d"},"top_media":{"desktop":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","mobile":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"anthology":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"content":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"}},"playerUpdates":{"5668ae6ee4b0b5e26955d6a6":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","56aa41bae4b091744c0440d8":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81","5841b2b5cc52c716ec6e5a7f":"60b8e355cdd90620331ba185","58b5e2b8d85a10302feee895":"60b64316b171b7444beafdb2","58b74698f78ced31417819ae":"60b8e5bec5449357a7ad9b52","58b74ccecebcea57e2c3a3d1":"60b8e5eac5449357a7ad9ca5","58cff690d85a100b9992bc39":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","58cffb3fb6d9b972a49a3c9d":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","58cffdd74d96935d7d6ec180":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","58d03a84f78ced6518eb2fa7":"60b643c82e76be41f112735c","592edf20e0fa177b0c26f7fd":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","5b35266b158f855373e28256":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","5c116f29f79c4171d82b7c2a":"60b64440b171b7444beb040b","5c1170fc600c9a697bf0c6b9":"60b646102e76be41f1127ffc","5c47791afa1b317df8ae0c4f":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","5c477987a6b48b35f164773d":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","5c4779ee943c3c2a64f28371":"60b8e747cdd90620331bb861","5c477a26fcd67b26879bc7c2":"60b8e788c5449357a7ada67b","5d8921a78c3ae845f366c9b6":"60ae7be5f3a7c13a30417ff9","58b98b00ba82aa39a6534321":"60d0de7c9340d7032ad1146c","58b9d14cb6d9b96c9ec32af3":"60d0dec19340d7032ad115a0","58cff8eccebcea42931e0436":"60d0e005b627221e9d819d44","592edf5de0fa177b0c26f95b":"60d0e38fb627221e9d81adcf","58cff72fd85a100b9992c112":"60d0e447b627221e9d81b0da","56b4d34fe4b022697697c400":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","60b8e4c0c5449357a7ad957d":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b","clickToPlayPlayer":"d014396e-b366-4c17-aeac-3ce906fa3fd0","videoPagePlayer":"f010447b-d244-4111-a314-7b4542ae4145","verticalPlayer":"e58cb05a-0bc8-4210-9108-fea82726c065","stickyPlayerControl":"52ea1755-d601-4ad1-bccc-d8cce3f0e5da","stickyPlayerON":"8055e9e5-3bda-4933-8d45-9ad814fb6e22"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"https://img.connatix.com/6dfad2c0-e10a-46f8-b189-7f233cb60379/1_th.jpg?crop=480:270,smart&width=480&height=270&format=jpeg&quality=60&fit=crop","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":6},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":1},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"5e207d07c5b63211760f626f","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"mobile","page_edition":"en-us"},"tags":[{"name":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/donald-trump","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/donald-trump","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/donald-trump"},"relegenceId":2789214,"department":{"name":"Latest News","slug":"politics-news"},"section":{"title":"Politics","slug":"politics"},"topic":{"title":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/news/topic/donald-trump"},{"name":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/ukraine","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/ukraine","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/ukraine"},"department":{"name":"Latest News","slug":"politics-news"},"section":{"title":"World News","slug":"world-news"},"topic":{"title":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/news/topic/ukraine"},{"name":"Office of Management and Budget","slug":"office-of-management-and-budget","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/office-of-management-and-budget","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/office-of-management-and-budget","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/office-of-management-and-budget"},"url":"https://action.news/topic/office-of-management-and-budget"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false,"enhancements":{}}">

This bombshell legal opinion from the independent @USGAO demonstrates, without a doubt, that the Trump Administration illegally withheld assistance from Ukraine and the public evidence shows that the president himself ordered this illegal act. pic.twitter.com/bkwyQ4Vk3K
Senator Chris Van Hollen (@ChrisVanHollen) January 16, 2020

Though GOAs decisions are significant, the office doesnt have the authority to compel other agencies to take action in response to its findings.

Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.), the top Republican on the House judiciary committee, told HuffPost he hadnt read the report but that he was skeptical of the conclusion.

How can money that does not need to be appropriated until September 30 and it was appropriated before September 30 how are they saying thats illegal? Collins said.

As noted in the GAO report, Congress appropriated $250 million in U.S. military aid to Ukraine for fiscal 2019. OMB had until the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30 to release the funds before they would expire.

OMB repeatedly delayed the release of funds, stating on apportionment schedules that withholding the aid was necessary to determine the best use of such funds, according to GAO.

However, OMB suddenly released the aid to Ukraine on Sept. 11 following a whistleblower complaint about Trumps July 25 call with Zelensky and the Houses decision to investigate the presidents Ukraine dealings.

Asked about the unlawful delays in aid, OMB told GAO that withholding the money was necessary to ensure it was not spent in a manner that could conflict with the Presidents foreign policy.

The ICA does not permit deferrals for policy reasons, the GAO report notes. OMBs justification for the withholding falls squarely within the scope of an impermissible policy deferral. Thus, the deferral of USAI funds was improper under the ICA.

.@SpeakerPelosi on GAO Report: \"The OMB, the White House, the administrationbroke the law.\"

Full video here: https://t.co/cgthkEFr3B pic.twitter.com/fGQIMRYKpX

CSPAN (@cspan) January 16, 2020","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"CSPAN","author_url":"https://twitter.com/cspan","cache_age":86400,"description":".@SpeakerPelosi on GAO Report: \"The OMB, the White House, the administrationbroke the law.\"Full video here: https://t.co/cgthkEFr3B pic.twitter.com/fGQIMRYKpX CSPAN (@cspan) January 16, 2020\n\n","options":{"_hide_media":{"label":"Hide photos, videos, and cards","value":false}},"provider_name":"Twitter","thumbnail_height":360,"thumbnail_url":"https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EOak-2pWAAAUtR5.jpg","thumbnail_width":640,"title":"CSPAN on Twitter","type":"rich","url":"https://twitter.com/cspan/status/1217842160046919680","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"mobile","editionInfo":{"id":"us","name":"U.S.","link":"https://action.news","locale":"en_US"},"originalEdition":"us","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"5e207d07c5b63211760f626f","entryPermalink":"https://action.news/entry/us-gao-trump-ukraine-aid-withheld-illegally_n_5e207d07c5b63211760f626f","entryTagsList":"donald-trump,ukraine,office-of-management-and-budget,@developing","sectionSlug":"politics","deptSlug":"politics-news","sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"us-news,world-news","isWide":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"us.politics","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc111dcf87c2cd2f5d8bf","overrides":{"front_page_top_videos":{"desktop":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","mobileweb":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d"},"top_media":{"desktop":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","mobile":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"anthology":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"},"content":{"desktop":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","mobile":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","iphone":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","ipad":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","androidphone":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","androidtablet":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c"}},"playerUpdates":{"5668ae6ee4b0b5e26955d6a6":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","56aa41bae4b091744c0440d8":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81","5841b2b5cc52c716ec6e5a7f":"60b8e355cdd90620331ba185","58b5e2b8d85a10302feee895":"60b64316b171b7444beafdb2","58b74698f78ced31417819ae":"60b8e5bec5449357a7ad9b52","58b74ccecebcea57e2c3a3d1":"60b8e5eac5449357a7ad9ca5","58cff690d85a100b9992bc39":"60b8e616cdd90620331bb0ba","58cffb3fb6d9b972a49a3c9d":"60b8e643cdd90620331bb1f6","58cffdd74d96935d7d6ec180":"60b8e671c5449357a7ad9f66","58d03a84f78ced6518eb2fa7":"60b643c82e76be41f112735c","592edf20e0fa177b0c26f7fd":"60b8e699c5449357a7ada04c","5b35266b158f855373e28256":"60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","5c116f29f79c4171d82b7c2a":"60b64440b171b7444beb040b","5c1170fc600c9a697bf0c6b9":"60b646102e76be41f1127ffc","5c47791afa1b317df8ae0c4f":"60b8e6bdc5449357a7ada147","5c477987a6b48b35f164773d":"60b8e701c5449357a7ada2ee","5c4779ee943c3c2a64f28371":"60b8e747cdd90620331bb861","5c477a26fcd67b26879bc7c2":"60b8e788c5449357a7ada67b","5d8921a78c3ae845f366c9b6":"60ae7be5f3a7c13a30417ff9","58b98b00ba82aa39a6534321":"60d0de7c9340d7032ad1146c","58b9d14cb6d9b96c9ec32af3":"60d0dec19340d7032ad115a0","58cff8eccebcea42931e0436":"60d0e005b627221e9d819d44","592edf5de0fa177b0c26f95b":"60d0e38fb627221e9d81adcf","58cff72fd85a100b9992c112":"60d0e447b627221e9d81b0da","56b4d34fe4b022697697c400":"60d2472d9340d7032ad7e443","60b8e4c0c5449357a7ad957d":"60e869dc7c5f3b17b6741b81"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"ff7fdddc-5441-4253-abc4-f12a33fad58b","clickToPlayPlayer":"d014396e-b366-4c17-aeac-3ce906fa3fd0","videoPagePlayer":"f010447b-d244-4111-a314-7b4542ae4145","verticalPlayer":"e58cb05a-0bc8-4210-9108-fea82726c065","stickyPlayerControl":"52ea1755-d601-4ad1-bccc-d8cce3f0e5da","stickyPlayerON":"8055e9e5-3bda-4933-8d45-9ad814fb6e22"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"https://img.connatix.com/6dfad2c0-e10a-46f8-b189-7f233cb60379/1_th.jpg?crop=480:270,smart&width=480&height=270&format=jpeg&quality=60&fit=crop","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":6},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":1},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"5e207d07c5b63211760f626f","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"mobile","page_edition":"en-us"},"tags":[{"name":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/donald-trump","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/donald-trump","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/donald-trump"},"relegenceId":2789214,"department":{"name":"Latest News","slug":"politics-news"},"section":{"title":"Politics","slug":"politics"},"topic":{"title":"Donald Trump","slug":"donald-trump","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/news/topic/donald-trump"},{"name":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/ukraine","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/ukraine","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/ukraine"},"department":{"name":"Latest News","slug":"politics-news"},"section":{"title":"World News","slug":"world-news"},"topic":{"title":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://action.news/news/topic/ukraine"},{"name":"Office of Management and Budget","slug":"office-of-management-and-budget","links":{"relativeLink":"topic/office-of-management-and-budget","permalink":"https://action.news/topic/office-of-management-and-budget","mobileWebLink":"https://action.news/topic/office-of-management-and-budget"},"url":"https://action.news/topic/office-of-management-and-budget"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"cetUnit":"buzz_body","bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0},"isCollectionEmbed":false,"enhancements":{}}">

.@SpeakerPelosi on GAO Report: "The OMB, the White House, the administrationbroke the law."

Full video here: https://t.co/cgthkEFr3B pic.twitter.com/fGQIMRYKpX
CSPAN (@cspan) January 16, 2020

Your Support Has Never Been More Critical

Other news outlets have retreated behind paywalls. At HuffPost, we believe journalism should be free for everyone.

Would you help us provide essential information to our readers during this critical time? We can't do it without you.

Can't afford to contribute? Support HuffPost by creating a free account and log in while you read.

You've supported HuffPost before, and we'll be honest we could use your help again . We view our mission to provide free, fair news as critically important in this crucial moment, and we can't do it without you.

Whether you give once or many more times, we appreciate your contribution to keeping our journalism free for all.

Whether you give just one more time or sign up again to contribute regularly, we appreciate you playing a part in keeping our journalism free for all.

Support HuffPost

Arthur Delaney contributed reporting.