White House releases nearly 200 pages of Ukraine-related documents

"President Trump's lawyers stood in the Senate on Tuesday arguing that documents are totally unnecessary for the impeachment trial, but these documents give lie to that entire position. Despite the Trump Administration's obstruction and the rhetoric at the trial, the public can now see even more evidence of the president's corrupt scheme as it unfolded in real time. The volume of material released, and the volume of material still secreted away, only highlights how much the administration has withheld from the House, the Senate, and the American public," American Oversight's executive director, Austin Evers, said in a statement.

The 192-page correspondence was published through the Freedom of Information Act. American Oversight filed several FOIA requests with OMB on for a range of records related to the office's role in suspending military aid to Ukraine as part of the president's attempt to pressure Ukraine to launch a political investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden.

Included in the documents are emails from OMB Acting Director Russell Vought and Michael Duffey, OMB's associate director for national security, including one from Duffey on the day of President Donald Trump's July 25 call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

According to the organization, both officials were key players in the withholding of aid to Ukraine last fall, which last week the Government Accountability Office said was illegal.

These documents "show a flurry of activity" on a number of days in late June 2019 after a Washington Examiner article about military assistance for Ukraine.

On December 19, the House of Representatives impeached Trump on two counts of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress.

The trial of the Trump impeachment case began in the U.S. Senate on January 21.

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