Chicago – August 29, 2025
A federal judge ruled on Thursday that Kari Lake, a Trump administration official, cannot fire the director of Voice of America (VOA), Michael Abramowitz, on her own. The judge said Lake was breaking the law by trying to do this.
The law requires Lake to get approval from a special advisory panel created by Congress to protect VOA from political influence. However, since President Trump removed most of the members of this panel and hasn’t replaced them, Lake cannot act without their support.
Abramowitz was offered a new position at a radio station in Greenville, N.C., but the judge ruled that this reassignment would also be illegal. Judge Royce C. Lamberth said Lake’s actions didn’t follow the law and confirmed that firing Abramowitz was not allowed.
Lamberth is handling two lawsuits related to Lake’s efforts to make big changes at VOA and its parent agency. In his ruling, the judge mentioned that Lake’s actions were part of an ongoing effort to reduce the work of VOA, which is supposed to provide reliable news abroad.
Since Lake took over, VOA has cut almost all of its 49 language services, laid off most of its workers, and greatly reduced its news coverage and original content.
