A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s effort to shut down Voice of America and its US Agency for Global Media sister networks, issuing a restraining order that halts terminations and raises constitutional questions about executive overreach.
A March 15 directive from President Trump called for the elimination of all non-legally required operations for USAGM.
US District Judge J. Paul Oetken ruled Friday that the administration cannot unilaterally dismantle Voice of America and its sister programs, which are funded through congressional appropriations. In his decision, Oetken said that eliminating the broadcasts and terminating staff without congressional approval would be a violation of the law.
The judge’s temporary restraining order does not require VOA to resume programming immediately, but it prohibits the administration from firing employees until further legal proceedings determine whether the shutdown effort was “arbitrary and capricious” in violation of federal statutes.
Court documents show that USAGM had planned to terminate at least 623 Voice of America employees – effectively preventing the agency from maintaining operations at the level authorized by Congress. Earlier this month, most VOA employees were placed on administrative leave, and broadcast operations were largely suspended.
USAGM has a budget of $886 million and employs about 3,500 people. Its international broadcast operations reach 420 million people in over 100 countries. As part of the Trump administration’s efforts under DOGE, USAGM had already cut ties with major news providers, including the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, and Reuters.
VOA attorney Andrew Celli commented, “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.”
The lawsuit, filed by VOA journalists and their unions, is one of four legal challenges currently pending against the administration, including another filed by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
DOGE is becoming more of a meat ax rather than a scalpel. The VOA already runs “on a shoe string” and keeping the transmitter sites running and maintained is necessary. Programming easier to change rather than scrapping the entire service. Not everyone in hostile countries can receive satellite service. Leave the meat ax to the EPA and other US job killing agencies.
While I agree the VoA is not a waste of money, I have to laugh … cut the EPA … yeah, because nobody needs clean air and water!
You just don’t want YOUR budget items cut. SMH.