Staff at the government broadcaster Voice of America have filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, which put nearly 900 employees on leave and froze funding last week.
BONNIE CASH/AFP via Getty Images/AFP
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BONNIE CASH/AFP via Getty Images/AFP
Six Voice of America journalists sued Kari Lake and the Trump administration on Friday, alleging their moves to shut down the U.S.-funded network were unlawful and unconstitutional.
The journalists say that the government’s acts violate their First Amendment rights on free speech grounds and usurp the U.S. Congress’s control of the power of the federal purse.
More than 900 full-time network employees were placed on indefinite leave last weekend; 550 contractors were terminated from their jobs. Most employees at the federal parent, U.S. Agency for Global Media, were also placed on indefinite leave.
The lead plaintiffs include Patsy Widakuswara, until recently Voice of America’s White House bureau chief and Jessica Jerreat, its press freedom editor. Four other journalists sued anonymously as John Does. Kathryn Neeper, the director of strategy and performance assessment at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, is also a named plaintiff. She was also placed on leave.
Few Voice of America journalists are known inside the U.S.; the network is prohibited from broadcasting to American audiences. Nonetheless, Widakuswara made headlines twice: First in pressing Trump’s then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in early 2021 over the siege of the U.S. Capitol and, earlier this month, in asking Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin about “the president’s plans to expel Palestinians from Gaza” at an appearance with President Trump at the White House.
Irritated, Trump asked Widakuswara what outlet she worked for. Upon hearing the answer, he replied, “No wonder,” and called on another reporter.
Invoking “waste, fraud and abuse” to shut down network
Lake is Trump’s special adviser overseeing USAGM. “Waste, fraud, and abuse run rampant in this agency and American taxpayers shouldn’t have to fund it,” Lake said in announcing the moves last weekend.
The effect was to shut Voice of America down. The most recent stories on its home page and its audio headlines feed are a week old; live streaming services are unavailable.
The suit, which additionally names acting USAGM Chief Executive Victor Morales as a defendant, seeks immediate reinstatement of all full-time staffers and contractors. It points to regulations and law which specify a firewall to insulate Voice of America and the other international networks funded by the agency from political tampering. Those measures are intended to ensure their professionalism.
“Tragically, Kari Lake lives in the MAGA fantasy world, but she makes decisions that have real-world consequences for hundreds
