A federal judge ordered Kari Lake, a Trump loyalist who oversaw the effective shutdown of Voice of America, to submit to questioning under oath over her efforts to dismantle the broadcaster despite legal obligations to continue its operations.
U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth said Lake was “verging on contempt of court” after she failed to comply with his repeated orders to give over information about her future intentions for the broadcaster.
At a hearing on Monday, government lawyers appeared to frustrate the judge. Lamberth said their answers were evasive and incomplete, and noted that Lake, who was not present at the hearing, “clearly hasn’t complied with my order.”
“On the face of it, she’s on the verge of contempt,” the judge said. “Why is she stonewalling me?”
Lake and her aides must testify by Sept. 15 and provide information about what she has withheld regarding Voice of America and its federal parent, the U.S. Agency for Global Media, according to the judge’s order.
“I don’t want to go through a contempt trial, but if it comes to that, then we’ll go through a contempt trial,” Lamberth said.
Lake assumed the role in the Trump administration after years as a local news anchor in Phoenix and two failed campaigns for Senate and governor in Arizona. Lake has fired hundreds of contract workers and placed hundreds of additional full-time employees on permanent paid leave. She has cited President Donald Trump’s executive order, which severely cut Voice of America and the network’s parent agency.
Lake is facing a pair of related cases from Voice of America’s director, multiple journalists, a senior executive of its parent company, and unions over her effort to dismantle the broadcaster entirely.
Lamberth previously ruled that Lake had acted hastily, violating legal and constitutional safeguards. In April, Lamberth ruled that dismantling the agency was likely a violation of the Constitution, as the International Broadcasting Act mandates continued operations of federally funded media networks.
CHINA CHEERS DEMISE OF VOICE OF AMERICA UNDER KARI LAKE
In July, the judge ordered Lake to demonstrate compliance with his order and show how the administration was using the $260 million Voice of America budget that Congress had approved.
Before Lake’s efforts, Voice of America ran a 24-hour news broadcast in 49 languages to 360 million people. It started in 1942 and was broadcast to Nazi-occupied territory in an attempt to give accurate reporting to Europe.