Michael Duffey, a politically appointed Office of Management and Budget official and former director of the Wisconsin Republican Party, is tangled in the new probe against President Donald Trump's Ukraine scandal.
As the Milwaukee Journal Sentinelnoted, the Wall Street Journal found that Duffy was given authority by the White House to hold up the Ukraine aid that President Donald Trump was allegedly holding until Ukraine agreed to help find dirt on former Vice President Joe Biden.
"While career civil servants put an initial hold on the aid, Michael Duffey, associate director of national security programs in OMB, was given the authority for continuing to keep the aid on hold after the career staff began raising their concerns to political officials at OMB, according to people familiar with the matter," The Journal reported.
Duffy oversaw the process for approving and releasing the funds for foreign aid.
According to allegations, Trump withheld nearly $400 million in aid to Ukraine over the summer. When he spoke to the newly elected President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 25, Zelensky said that he was grateful for the past support of Ukraine in the area of defense.
"We. are ready to continue to cooperate for the next steps," Zelensky said. "Specifically we are almost ready to buy more Javelins from the United States for defense purposes."
"I would like you to do us a favor though," Trump said according to the notes of the call released by the White House.
According to the Journal, putting a political person in charge of such an operation is not a typical decision.
"The involvement of a political official like Mr. Duffey in the apportionment process is unusual, according to several former OMB officials," the report said.
Duffy resigned from the Wisconsin Republican Party in 2016.