As Democrats look increasingly likely to take over Congress after the 2026 midterm elections, some lawmakers are looking toward impeachment — but not necessarily for President Donald Trump.
MS NOW columnist Hayes Brown cautioned that Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought may be the most dangerous man in Trump’s administration, and he should get the first honor.
Brown argues that while Trump grabs the headlines, Vought “has spent the last year and a half willfully breaking the law.” He is quietly carrying out a bigger power grab: ignoring Congress, slashing spending lawmakers already approved and turning the White House budget office into a weapon against the legislative branch.
Vought didn’t have any role in the first administration, so he spent a lot of time outside the White House promoting his vision for a presidency with absolute power. The OMB director has his “hand in how practically every tiny bud on the executive branch operates. With the possible exception of deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller,” characterized Brown.
One example is the Smithsonian museums. Trump proposed cutting its funding, Congress rejected the cut, then Vought allegedly moved to stop the institution from spending beyond the president’s demand. It’s becoming part of a pattern of the administration restricting funding to agencies it doesn’t have unilateral control over. It’s against what the Supreme Court mandates for the roles of each branch of government.
Brown also explained that Vought’s moves may violate the Impoundment Control Act and possibly even the Anti-Deficiency Act. Both can carry penalties.
“When a president delays, withholds or impounds funds to impose a cut proposed rejected by Congress, he is blatantly disregarding the appropriations laws: the funds appropriated for the salary of the Office of Management and Budget officials imposing those cuts is being spent in direct violation of that legal prohibition,” said the the Anti-Deficiency Act.
One reason Vought is easier to go after is that he’s not Trump and lacks the political shield from his MAGA base.
According to Brown, What Vought does have is a contempt for Congress and its authority.
Cerin Lindgrensavage, a counsel with Project Democrac, and David A. Super, a law professor at Georgetown Law penned an opinion essay for The Hill. The two explained: “Trump proposed cutting funds for the Smithsonian by more than $60 million. Congress rejected that cut and increased Smithsonian funding to account for inflation. Vought’s office then unlawfully forbade the Smithsonian from spending any money Congress appropriated beyond the president’s budget request[.]”