The independent watchdog ousted by President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said that a high-ranking State Department official “tried to bully” him in part because of his review of last year’s emergency arms sale for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Former State Department Inspector General Steve Linick told lawmakers that Undersecretary of State for Management Mike Bulatao had sought to dissuade him from conducting a review of the $8 billion emergency arms sale that Trump and Pompeo approved last year, according to a transcript released today.

Why it matters: Linick said Bulatao had told him it wasn’t appropriate to look into the emergency arms sale certification for Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates “because it was a review of policy.” The ousted watchdog countered that the inspector general has the authority to “review how policy is implemented.”

“We were not judging whether the policy was good or bad,” said Linick. “We are nonpartisan. We just look at how policies are carried out and whether they comport with applicable regulations and law.”