A federal judge on Monday ordered two federal agencies to hand over records to a news organization regarding the Trump administration’s withholding of military aid to Ukraine, a focal point in the presidential impeachment inquiry.
Under the ruling, the Department of Defense and the Office of Management and Budget are bound by a tight deadline for handing over nonexempt documents to the Center for Public Integrity (CPI) after the nonprofit news outlet issued a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request for the records.
Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, a district judge for the District Court for the District of Columbia and Clinton appointee, noted that such rulings are generally rare in a FOIA context, but suggested that the impeachment inquiry against President Trump changed the calculus.
“The requested documents are sought in order to inform the public on a matter of extreme national concern,” Kollar-Kotelly wrote. “Only an informed electorate can develop its opinions and persuasively petition its elected officials to act in ways which further the aims of those opinions.”
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Judge orders Pentagon, budget office to give Ukraine documents to news outlet https://t.co/cQuvPBNSWG pic.twitter.com/tVMGA8cQpq
— The Hill (@thehill) November 25, 2019
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