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Gag of America

Here is what a Google News search for Voice of America looks like right now:

‘Bloody Saturday’ at Voice of America and other U.S.-funded networks, by David Folkenflik at NPR, begins with this:

Journalists showed up at the Voice of America today to broadcast their programs only to be told they had been locked out: Federal officials had embarked on indefinite mass suspensions.

All full-time staffers at the Voice of America and the Office for Cuba Broadcasting, which runs Radio and Television Martí, were affected — more than 1,000 employees. The move followed a late Friday night edict from President Trump that its parent agency, called the U.S. Agency for Global Media, must eliminate all activities that are not required by law.

In addition, under the leadership of Trump appointees, the agency has severed all contracts for the privately incorporated international broadcasters it funds, including Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.

The termination notices for grants for the funded networks, two of which were reviewed by NPR, carried the signature of Trump’s senior adviser Kari Lake, whom he placed at USAGM, not the agency’s acting chief executive. Lake does not appear in her current job to have the statutory authority to carry out that termination.

She may not, but here is how the USAGM site looks, above the fold, this morning:

Here is the story behind that image:

Today, in compliance with President Trump’s Executive Order titled, Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy, dated March 14, 2025, the US Agency for Global Media initiated measures to eliminate the non-statutory components and functions to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law. USAGM and the outlets it oversees will be reduced to their statutory functions and associated personnel will be reduced to the minimum presence and function required by law.

This action will impact the agency’s workforce at USAGM, Voice of America, Office of Cuba Broadcasting, and all Grantees. Most USAGM staff affected by this action will be placed on paid-administrative leave beginning Saturday, March 15, 2025, and remain on leave until further notice.

“While at USAGM, I vow to fully implement President Trump’s executive orders in his mission to reduce the size and scope of the federal government. Today we continue the process of doing that by streamlining our operations to what is statutorily required by law,” said USAGM Senior Adviser, Kari Lake. “The US Agency for Global media will continue to deliver on all statutory programs that fall under the agency’s purview and shed everything that is not statutorily required. I fully support the President’s executive order. Waste, fraud, and abuse run rampant in this agency and American taxpayers shouldn’t have to fund it.”

A few of the most egregious findings:

  • Massive national security violations, including spies and terrorist sympathizers and/or supporters infiltrating the agency
  • Eye-popping self-dealing involving contracts, grants and high-value settlement agreements
  • Obscene over-spending including a nearly quarter-of-a-billion-dollar lease for a Pennsylvania Avenue high-rise that has no broadcasting facilities to meet the needs of the agency and included a $9 million commission to a private real estate agent with connections
  • $100s-of-millions being spent on fake news companies
  • a product that often parrots the talking-points of America’s adversaries

This agency is not salvageable.

From top-to-bottom this agency is a giant rot and burden to the American taxpayer—a national security risk for this nation—and irretrievably broken. While there are bright spots within the agency with personnel who are talented and dedicated public servants, this is the exception rather than the rule.

It is unfortunate that the work that was done by self-interested insiders in coordination with outside activist groups and radical Leftist advocacy organizations to “Trump-Proof” the agency made it impossible to reform. In fact, they weren’t just “Trump-Proofing” the agency from political leadership, they were accountability-proofing the agency from the American people.  They did all this while spending taxpayer money to create false narratives. These were amplified by biased media counterparts with clear conflicts of interest at the Washington Post, NPR and more, to actively cover up their obscene waste, fraud, and abuse.

“This is a significant step toward restoring the greatness of the United States and promoting freedom and democracy.  Going forward, I am going to ensure accountability will be the norm and not the exception. I appreciate the work of the dedicated public servants and their contributions to the Agency and its outlets. I look forward to moving forward with modernizing the core mission of telling America’s story throughout the world in a meaningful, impactful and effective way,” Lake added.

Whether you agree with it or not, this is not a news story. It’s the kind of shit one hears from a junta after a coup.

As for Lake’s claim about the “obscenely expensive 15-year lease,” here’s what David Folkenflik reports in his ‘Bloody Saturday’ story:

Lake’s claims of waste on new HQ challenged

On Friday evening, before Trump’s order, Lake posted a video of the new headquarters for USAGM and the Voice of America to argue that it’s an exemplar of profligate spending.

“I’m sitting here on the 13th floor of a shiny, brand-new beautiful skyscraper building that is costing you, the taxpayer, a fortune,” Lake said, as camera footage lingered over features including glass walls, interior waterfalls, and modern conference rooms. “Here’s the kicker: They already have a building that they’re located in, that is paid off, that they could have renovated or updated.”

Former USAGM CFO Grant Turner says she’s got it backwards. According to the USAGM’s announcement last September, the lease, thanks to a slow real estate market caused by the pandemic, stands to save the federal government $150 million over 15 years.

“That’s a bunch of lies and misinformation coming out of her mouth,” said Turner, who left the agency in January. “In fact, it’s probably one of the best deals struck by a tenant in D.C. history.”

Four USAGM and Voice of America staffers backed up Turner’s account on condition of anonymity, citing fears of retribution in the current climate. For one thing, they note, the new building is not new. It’s nearly two decades old — built in 2006, according to the general contractor on the project. For another, the old building wasn’t “paid off” — the agency doesn’t own it. The agency got three years in free rent at the new headquarters, and was drawing staffers out of the old Wilbur J. Cohen building, they said, thus sizeably reducing its footprint and rent paid to the federal government.

And the new building’s landlord gave $27 million toward the construction of state-of-the-art studios. That would have been necessary in the technologically archaic Cohen building — absent the existential question now hovering over the networks.

As Scott Adams says, Facts don’t matter. What matters is how much we hate the person talking.

The VOA isn’t one person. But it is a voice, and Trump and Lake clearly hate it.

Now, two questions:

  1. Is the VOA still on the air? I’m asking around, and haven’t heard yet.
  2. If it stays on, will it be in a politically corrected way that sounds like Fox News? Or will it go away completely?

Any guesses?

Bonus link from Francine Hardaway: The Scream Test: Elon Musk’s Tech Bro Strategy.

[Later…] CNN says VOA is silent while I am told both that some services are on the air and that some are just running music. Ah: the NY Times just confirmed it.

More:

Note: I’ve added the list above to a later post: It’s Over.

 

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