Federal Judge Invalidates Kari Lake's USAGM Appointment

A federal judge in Washington ruled on Saturday that Kari Lake lacked the legal authority to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, invalidating her decisions to lay off more than 1,000 employees and sharply reduce operations at Voice of America and affiliated outlets.

U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth determined that Lake's appointment as acting chief executive officer of the agency, which began on July 31 and ended on November 19, violated the Appointments Clause of the Constitution and the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by three former Voice of America journalists: White House bureau chief Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper, who were among those affected by the staff cuts.

Lake, selected by President Donald Trump to oversee the agency without Senate confirmation, had terminated contracts for journalists and producers, leading to the dismissal of most employees. Programming at Voice of America, which once broadcast in dozens of languages to audiences in regions with limited press freedoms, was reduced to a handful of languages. The agency, which also funds Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia, operated with a...