The White House Office of Management and Budget's officials decided not to testify before the US House of Representatives as part of an impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump, an administration official said.
According to the official, Office of Management and Budget director Russ Vought will not appear before the US House Committee on the impeachment inquiry to give testimony on the matter on Friday.
Russell Vought (acting director of the Office of Management and Budget) says he will defy congressional subpoenas. I hope he pays a price for this obstruction of justice.https://t.co/VjQAYxPhdg
— John McLaughlin (@je_mclaughlin) November 3, 2019
Michael Duffey and Brian McCormack, associate directors of the Office of Management and Budget, will also skip depositions, the official added.
The defiance comes in the wake of the ongoing impeachment inquiry, which the US leader has called a 'witch hunt' that the president claims has the goal of destroying his reputation before the upcoming election. Trump has published the transcript of his conversation with Ukraine's Zelensky to prove, as he said, that he committed no wrongdoing, and invited his Ukrainian colleague to come to Washington for a joint press conference.