ISTANBUL

A US federal judge ruled Saturday that Kari Lake, appointed by President Donald Trump without Senate confirmation to lead the parent agency of Voice of America, unlawfully headed the US Agency for Global Media for several months last year, invalidating mass layoffs and other actions taken during that period.

The US Agency for Global Media is an independent federal body that oversees Voice of America and funds outlets such as Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

In early 2025, the Trump administration sought to reduce funding for the agency and appointed Lake to lead it without Senate confirmation. Congress later allocated about $500 million more than Lake had requested for the agency’s 2026 budget.

During her tenure from July 31 to Nov. 19, Lake terminated contracts and removed more than 1,000 agency employees.

US District Judge Royce C. Lamberth said the mass layoffs and other actions taken during that period “are void,” according to CNN.

“Only the Appointments Clause or the Vacancies Act’s exclusive structure may authorize service as a principal officer, and Lake satisfies the requirements of neither the statute nor the Constitution,” Lamberth wrote in the ruling.

He concluded that there had been “an unlawful effort to transform Lake into the CEO of US Agency for Global Media in all but name,” citing violations of the Constitution’s Appointments Clause and the Federal Vacancies Reform Act.

The plaintiffs -- Patsy Widakuswara, Kate Neeper and Jessica Jerreat -- said they felt “vindicated and deeply grateful.”

“The judge’s ruling that Kari Lake’s actions shall have no force or effect is a powerful step toward undoing the damage she has inflicted on this American institution that we love,” they said in a statement.