Kari Lake can't fire Voice of America director, judge says

A federal judge on Thursday barred the Trump administration from removing Voice of America’s (VOA) director Michael Abramowitz from his post.

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth ruled that Kari Lake, President Trump’s top advisor to the U.S Agency for Global Media, cannot fire Abramowitz, who was told he would be “subject to termination” starting Aug. 31, according to court documents.

The ruling states that Abramowitz can only be removed from his position as director by a majority vote of the International Broadcasting Advisory Board.

“The applicable statutory requirements could not be clearer: the director of Voice of America ‘may only be removed if such action has been approved by a majority vote’” Lamberth wrote.

“The merits are decided, and there is no longer a question of whether the termination was unlawful,” Lamberth added.

Abramowitz, who was appointed director of VOA in 2019, was previously placed on administrative leave as Lake slashed the number of employees at the government-funded global news agency. 

“This dispute arises from yet another twist in the saga of the U.S. Agency for Global Media’s efforts to dial back the operations of Voice of America contrary to statuary requirements,” Lamberth wrote in the ruling.

VOA has been a target of the Trump administration, which seeks to transform it into an “America First” outlet — an effort that Republicans have largely applauded.