A federal judge sided with silenced Voice of America journalists on Friday, the latest setback for President Trump’s push to shut down US government-funded international broadcasters.
US District Court Judge J. Paul Oetken issued a temporary restraining order meant to block any further efforts to terminate VOA.
The judge found that the executive branch “is usurping Congress’s power of the purse and its legislative supremacy” by scrapping a congressionally chartered agency. The restraining order means that the judge believes the VOA journalists are likely to prevail on the merits of the case.
Andrew G. Celli Jr., an attorney for the VOA journalists who filed suit, said that “this is a decisive victory for press freedom and the First Amendment, and a sharp rebuke to an Administration that has shown utter disregard for the principles that define our democracy.”
For now Voice of America is still offline and off the air, but Celli said “we are prepared for the next battle,” and other lawsuits against the shutdown are looming.
Trump said two weeks ago that he wanted VOA’s parent, the U.S. Agency for Global Media, eliminated “to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law.”
His pick to run VOA, failed Arizona gubernatorial and US Senate candidate Kari Lake, immediately put VOA’s entire workforce on administrative leave and pulled funding from every other US-backed broadcaster.
But now the law is catching up, and many of the initial impacts have been reversed, at least for the time being.
This week Radio Marti, which broadcasts into Cuba, resumed radio and TV transmissions after dozens of employees at the government’s Office of Cuba Broadcasting were allowed back to work.
A few dozen other US Agency for Global Media employees have also been brought back from administrative leave as Lake and her allies figure out next steps, including laying off some of the people currently on leave.
The Trump administration decided to take drastic action against the broadcasters – like turning off Radio Marti altogether – and then piece things back together.
At least two judges have ruled against the administration and lent support to the embattled networks, which have enjoyed bipartisan support for decades up until now.
Other than Voice of America and Radio Marti, the US-backed broadcasters are private, nonprofit entities that rely on grant money from the government, but have a degree of separation. Lake tried to terminate the grants, and three of the networks filed suit to stop her.
The first network to sue, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, or RFE/RL for short, was granted a temporary restraining order by a judge earlier this week. The agency subsequently said it would restore some funding. It notified the Open Technology Fund, which also sued, of the same intent.
But staffers at the networks, who spoke with CNN on the condition of anonymity, said they expect the Trump administration to keep trying to pull the proverbial plugs. “We’re all just wondering what their next moves will be,” one of the staffers said.
Keeping the networks on the air and online is what “Congress intended,” RFE/RL CEO Steve Capus said in a statement Thursday.
Capus indicated that Lake has not been in touch with network leadership – a point also emphasized by sources at other US-backed broadcasters.
“We are eager to speak directly with USAGM leadership about the extraordinary and cost-effective work that RFE/RL performs for the American people,” Capus said.
On Friday, RFE/RL said it would continue to pursue its court case while awaiting the promised funding.
Another broadcaster, Radio Free Asia, filed a lawsuit Thursday, with the hope that the suit will trigger the restoration of its funds, too.
Given all the uncertainty, the broadcasters are operating in diminished fashion right now. A notice on Radio Free Asia’s home page notes that “we are now operating with fewer staff.” Furloughs are also set to take effect at Radio Free Europe.
The broadcasters provide news and current affairs coverage around the world, particularly in countries that are saturated by propaganda and starved for independent news coverage.
Radio Free Asia CEO Bay Fang said her network “remains committed to fulfilling its Congressional mandate of providing a voice that counters the propaganda of the Chinese Communist Party and other authoritarian regimes in Asia.”
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