The Government Accounting Office, a federal watchdog agency that is a strictly legislative body, said Thursday a White House office violated federal law in withholding security assistance to Ukraine.

The “nonpartisan” GAO is run by someone confirmed to a 15-year term in 2010 under a Democrat President, Democrat-controlled Senate, and Democrat House, Rep. Zeldin tweeted when news broke that the GAO was going to hand the Democrats an allegedly impeachable crime.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi went nuts on the air today claiming the President is a criminal.

The GAO 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.

The President has always contended that he wanted Ukraine to clean up the corruption before he handed them additional funds. There is no proof that this reaches the level of high crimes and misdemeanors.

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.

This is the basis for impeaching the President, and allegedly this gives Democrats their crime — only it doesn’t.

There are so many laws on the books, we all break one a day.

JONATHAN TURLEY SAYS NOTHING HAS CHANGED

This changes nothing. We all know he violated the act as have many presidents before him. That is not an impeachable offense. Read Jonathan Turley’s explanation below.

Famed liberal lawyer, Jonathan Turley wrote on his website today:

The GAO has no real authority other than declaring such violations. Other presidents, including Bill Clinton, have been found to be in such violations by the GAO. These other presidents were also found to have caused “nonprogrammatic delays.”

The aid was released before the deadline at the end of September but there is no question that a series of holds were placed on the aid. The White House claims that it wanted to confirm facts about corruption in Ukraine as well as to put pressure on allies to give more funding. If one accepts that the White House did act for such non-political purposes, it is still possible to be in violation of the Act but it would not be a violation that constitutes an impeachable offense — any more than it was for prior presidents like Clinton. The fact that this was not a “programmatic” issue is why it was found to violate the Act — not because of a finding of a quid pro quo.

…It is not whether the White House was faithful to the wording of the Act. As I have previously written, I do not believe these actions were consistent. The question is whether the violation in the temporary hold on the funds constitutes a high crime and misdemeanor. This report does not materially change that status quo on that question. Trump is not being impeached for a “nonprogrammatic delay” in funding.

They have to prove he violated the act and they have not done so. All is as it was. They have not made their case.

NOTHING HAS CHANGED!

Yet, Nancy Pelosi is using this anyway:

Watch:

.@SpeakerPelosi: “This is the day that the Government Accounting Office confirms that the president’s actions at the center of our impeachment articles, withholding congressionally approved military aid from Ukraine, was illegal.” https://t.co/WHcoNhngPm pic.twitter.com/8tQmeWbQT1 — CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) January 16, 2020

But Joe Biden, no problem:

Watch: