Who Kari Lake Is and What She’s Doing
Kari Lake now runs the United States Agency for Global Media, or USAGM, and she says she is cleaning house. She calls out waste, alleged globalist influence, and taxpayer-funded programs that she believes have not served American interests. Lake is moving to cut staffing toward the agency’s statutory minimum and to shift how the U.S. communicates abroad so the voice heard reflects President Donald Trump’s priorities. It is a bold agenda and it has made her a target in Washington and in parts of the press.
Claimed Corruption and Spending Problems
Lake tells a straightforward story: years of poor oversight, grants that lacked transparency, and money going to groups without clear results. She points to examples where USAGM paid intermediaries rather than keeping internet freedom work in-house through the Office of Internet Freedom. Lake says that when money flows through multiple organizations it becomes opaque and harder to track which programs actually help people under repressive regimes. She argues that taxpayers deserve clear results for every dollar sent overseas.
The Fight Over VPN Funding for Iran
A flashpoint has been how to get virtual private network services into Iran fast. Lake wanted to use USAGM funds already available to speed money to the Open Technology Fund, or OTF, so Iranians could access information during protests. Some lawmakers wanted a more traditional path that would route money from the State Department to USAGM and then to OTF. Lake says that slower path could take months. Critics argue the faster move could bypass oversight. The disagreement became a public battle that left some asking whether policy, politics, or process should win.
Accusations From the Left and From Some Reporters
Leftwing outlets have been loud in their criticism, accusing Lake of damaging America’s broadcasting reach and of making it harder to support dissidents abroad. Headlines have called her an obstacle to getting information into Iran. Lake and her supporters call those reports selective and politically motivated. She insists her goal is to modernize how the government communicates overseas, not to silence broadcasts that defend freedom. Whether you agree with her tactics or not, the controversy shows how big changes in government media touch raw nerves in Washington.
Why Lake Wants to Move Assets to State
Lake says her ultimate plan is to reduce USAGM to zero and move broadcasting assets to the Department of State. Her pitch is that diplomacy should drive how America presents itself abroad, not a separate federal agency with its own bureaucracy. She argues that consolidation would reduce duplication, speed decision making, and put foreign messaging under one roof. Opponents worry that this could politicize broadcasts or weaken specialized journalism that foreign audiences trust. That debate gets to the heart of what role America should play when it tries to promote freedom and counter hostile regimes.
The Larger Question: Transparency Versus Tradition
At its core, this is a fight about how government programs should operate in the modern world. Should Washington preserve long standing structures because they exist now, or should it force change when those structures appear wasteful or opaque? Lake is betting on technology, accountability, and a smaller payroll to deliver faster results. Her critics worry about speed at the expense of safeguards. Voters and lawmakers are now left to decide which risk they prefer.
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