President Donald Trump's pick to direct the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought, is facing criticism for his combative disdain for Congress's constitutional power of the purse and his refusal to abide by a vital reform enacted after Watergate to check the president's authority. Vought wants to invoke a power known as impoundment that would allow the president to refuse to spend money that Congress has appropriated. This could enable a president to zero out entire funding categories. Vought's track record as head of the OMB during Trump's first term demonstrates he cannot be trusted. Vought was also an architect of Project 2025 and wrote the chapter on how to better wield executive power. He describes himself as a Christian nationalist and has advocated outlawing the drugs used in medical abortions. He has referred to Jan. 6 rioters as 'political prisoners' and has maintained that the 2020 election was 'rigged.'