NEW: DOGE Committee Investigates ‘Threat To National Security’ At Government Media Agency
DOGE subcommittee chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) is investigating “gross negligence” and “rampant cronyism” at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, a supposedly neutral taxpayer-funded media outlet that has come under the microscope in recent weeks.
Trump signed an executive order on Friday ordering the dismantling of seven federal agencies and offices, including the United States Agency for Global Media, which is the parent company of Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
“The non-statutory components and functions of the following governmental entities shall be eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law, and such entities shall reduce the performance of their statutory functions and associated personnel to the minimum presence and function required by law,” the president’s executive order reads.
As the administration discloses hundreds of millions of dollars in federal waste stemming from the agencies, Rep. Greene is commissioning a separate investigation into what she described as a “direct threat to national security” within the U.S. Agency For Global Media.
In a letter addressed to Kari Lake, the Trump Administration’s senior advisor overseeing USAGM, Greene said that over the past decade, the Office of Personnel Management and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence have uncovered “gross negligence and intentional defiance of national security protocols, resulting in unfettered and unauthorized access of sensitive information by federal employees.” The letter was first obtained and reviewed by Fox News.
Greene pointed to a separate investigation launched by the law firm McGuireWoods in 2020, which confirmed whistleblower testimonies about widespread corruption and mismanagement within the agency. According to the report, abuses included the unlawfully granting J-1 visas and awarding millions of dollars in contracts through the Open Technology Fund to friends and individuals with whom there were conflicts of interest.
The congresswoman further highlighted additional “egregious abuses” uncovered by McGuireWoods, including evidence that senior agency officials wiped laptops clean before turning them over to investigators. While individuals implicated in the scandal were fired during Trump’s first term in the White House, Greene noted that “nearly all” of those involved were rehired during the Biden administration, “allowing them to resume their previous activities with zero consequences.”
As part of the investigation, Greene is demanding access to information regarding all grant agreements awarded through the Open Technology Fund, all settlement agreements for individuals implicated in the McGuireWoods report and any additional communications or information that Lake deems relevant, Fox News reported.
“For years, USAGM engaged in rampant cronyism, issuing corrupt contracts to friends and family through the Open Technology Fund (OTF), while senior officials bypassed security protocols, mishandled sensitive information, and obstructed investigations,” Greene’s office announced in a statement.
In a separate statement to Fox News, Greene described the Biden Administration’s decision to rehire those involved in the wrongdoing not only an “insult to taxpayers” but also a “direct threat to national security.”
“We will not allow the former Biden regime to cover up illegal activity and shield bad actors from accountability,” she added.