A federal judge found that Trump loyalist Kari Lake unlawfully ran a federal agency for several months last year.
As a result, various actions Lake, 56, took while heading the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) are void, ruled Judge US District Judge Royce C. Lamberth on Saturday. This includes over 1,000 layoffs at Voice of America (VOA), which is run by USAGM.
Lamberth ruled that Lake was “plainly ineligible” to serve as acting CEO under the Vacancies Act because her appointment was not approved by the Senate.
Lake called the Ronald Reagan-appointed judge an “activist” and said she would appeal, according to CNN. The Daily Beast reached out to USAGM for comment.
VOA staffers had sued Lake to save their jobs and the network. Patsy Widakuswara, VOA’s White House Bureau Chief and one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, said she and her colleagues “feel vindicated and deeply grateful.”
“The judge’s ruling that Kari Lake’s actions shall have no force or effect is a powerful step toward undoing the damage she has inflicted on this American institution that we love,” Widakuswara said in an X post.
The failed gubernatorial candidate has been on a mission to dismantle VOA at the behest of Donald Trump. The federally funded broadcaster is known for producing journalism that promotes democratic values to foreign countries. However, the White House has previously slammed the outlet for being “anti-Trump” and publishing “radical propaganda.”
Lake has tried to reshape Voice of America in MAGA’s image, tapping Trump-friendly One America News to syndicate its programs on the network.
The former Fox News anchor is also a two-time failed Trump-endorsed Politician who unsuccessfully campaigned for Arizona governor in 2022 and Arizona senator in 2024. Lake also sparked rumors in January that she would run for office in Iowa after purchasing a $60,000 condo in the state.
“This is an enormous benefit to the American taxpayer, who is the sole-source of funding for USAGM’s news outlets, which broadcast only to international audiences,” Lake said at the time.
Lake has faced major legal hurdles in her handling of the USAGM and VOA. Last August, she was blocked from ousting VOA Director Michael Abramowitz. Judge Lamberth also ruled on this case, stating she could not fire Abramowitz without the approval of the International Broadcasting Advisory Board, which had been gutted by Trump.
![Lake told Stanton during the House Committee on Foreign Affairs hearing.that lies “could be broadcast today on [Voice of America] and there's nothing that could be done about it."](https://www.thedailybeast.com/resizer/v2/2466MMPYCJHGHHUK7NENJOOAAU.jpg?auth=b4754c208b7b76e60d8da98dfd6f31c846a375dbf3e0def622ba311016cdbabb&width=800&height=533)
Lamberth also blocked Lake from firing 500 VOA staffers last September and blasted her agency’s “disrespect” for the court. Prior to that ruling, he had ordered the reversal of arbitrary and unlawful terminations, although the USAMG did not comply.
The federal judge previously stated that Lake and her agency’s actions merited contempt proceedings. While Lamberth did not pursue such proceedings, he wrote that the decision “should not be mistaken for lenience toward the defendants’ egregious erstwhile conduct.”
