The judge freezes the Carrie Lake Plan to close the free radio Europe/Radio Freedom: NPR

A temporary federal judge for the US Agency for Global Information and Carrie Lake, Senior Adviser to President Trump at the agency, prevented from proceeding with plans to cut all federal funds to free Europe/Freedom Radio.

The international network is located in the court in Washington, DC, and is seeking a permanent opposite of the lake’s orders to kill all funding for this and to reduce all operations, although Congress is worth $ 142 million to the network in the current fiscal year.

The White House had ordered The US Agency for World Media to reduce its operations only to what is required under the law.

The agency runs Voice of America and distributes the money allocated by the Congress for international non -profit networks, including Radio Europe/Radio Freedom. Although Radio Europe/Radio Freedom is a private broadcaster, it is totally dependent on federal funds.

He argued that the agency’s efforts to close it are unconstitutional. In his rule on Tuesday, the judge who heads the case suggested that he found this convincing argument.

“The USAGM leadership cannot, with one sentence of justice, almost an explanation, forced RFE/RL to close – even if the president tells them to do so,” wrote the American District Court judge, Royce Lambert, one of the appointed Reagan. “The court, in line with the decision of Congress for a long time, concludes that the continued RFE/RL operation in the public interest.”

Europe Radio/Radio Freedom, which was launched in 1950 in the early years of the Cold War, provides reports in 27 languages ​​to serve the masses in 23 countries. The network says that its work is heard, read and watching 47 million people every week.

Iran, Russia, Russia and other authoritarian regimes imprisoned by Iran, Russia and other authoritarian regimes were imprisoned by Iran, Russia, Russia, and other authoritarian regimes imprisoned by Iran and Free Russia in Europe/Freedom Radio Freedom/Radio imprisonment by Iran, Russia and other authoritarian regimes. Like other international broadcasters funded by the United States government, the task is to provide fair news coverage in areas where the free press is not strong enough to work, or is suppressed by the authorities.

Their work represents a form of American soft power, as it sets how a democratic society works by integrating the opposition from the official government line and unwanted developments in the reports.

Its partners attacked Trump Radio Europe/Radio Freedom, which prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Urban – both of whom established a warm relationship with Trump.

Free Europe Radio/CEO Radio Steve Kabous, who told NPR earlier that the loss of money would force “radical” measures, praised the judge’s order.

A nightmare said that in their mission is that their mission designed by Congress is a message worthy of attention and should continue. ” A statement issued to the press. “Over the course of 75 years, the RFE/RL has been closely consistent with the American national security services by combating oversight and propaganda in many of the most repressive societies in the world.”

The network continued its work during the legal battle. NPR’s nightmare was told that she was working from her savings.

Lake and USAGM did not respond to the NPR request to comment on the ruling; They did not respond more broadly to this litigation and its leadership to dismantle the networks supervised by the agency.

“They want us to continue to pump money,” Lake recently Former political strategic expert Trump Steve Bannon told his pod.. “The president completely controls the executive branch. He is practicing his strength, and they do not like it. We will fight these lawsuits. We believe that we are right here.”

Courts full of challenges for the work of the White House

The motivation to reduce the agency coincides with the double priorities of the Trump administration: to reduce government programs and devotion to the old press as an independent investigation. The courts were full of challenges facing the behavior of the White House.

Lambert’s rule is a comfort for Radio Europe/Freedom Radio, at least at the present time, and a potential mark on the coming things, as a lake and the agency also ordered the closure of its sister organizations: Asia Radio, Middle East broadcast networks and the Open Technology Fund. The technology fund has already filed a lawsuit in Washington, DC, seeking to restore its financing as well. Radio Free Asia referred to exploring lawsuits.

Six of America’s votes, a USAGM employee and a coalition of government unions and press invitation groups have filed a lawsuit in the Federal Court in Manhattan to restore employees to that network. Indeed-on a day it is called “Saturday Bloody Saturday” by the former USAGM Financial Director-the agency has put its full-time employees on a paid vacation indefinitely and ended all contractors.

Immediately before the Monday session on the temporary restriction order, the agency agreed to one request: it said it would spend $ 7.5 million to Radio Europe/Radio Freedom, which was due during the first two weeks of March.

In the session, Lambers seemed skeptical in the argument of the Ministry of Justice that USAGM was not required to distribute money in the way in which Congress should spend.

Why is Congress appropriate at all? Lambres request.

On Tuesday, he ruled that Radio Europe/Freedom Radio was standing for the masters in its broader argument.

“Here, the” interpretation “presented by USAGM can be characterized as an interpretation: it is a single line in the end of the termination that stating that” the award no longer affects the agency’s priorities “,” Lambres wrote in his rule.

The judge indicated that he rapidly intends to judge the broader goal of the network to get full money.