'Propaganda machine': Democrats unleash on Trump nominee in explosive hearing

25 June

Kari Lake speaking at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on July 16, 2024 (Image: Shutterstock)

In a fiery hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday, Democrats took aim at Kari Lake, senior adviser to the U.S. Agency for Global Media, accusing her of using the agency as a mouthpiece for the Trump administration's messaging.

In a video posted to X by anti-MAGA conservative news outlet The Bulwark, Rep. Madeleine Dean (D‑Pa.) stunned the room when she told Lake bluntly, “You are a propaganda machine for the Trump administration,” challenging her credibility and motives.

In her inaugural congressional appearance Wednesday, Lake branded the agency responsible for Voice of America and other publicly funded news outlets as “incompetent, corrupt, biased, and a threat to America’s national security and standing in the world.”

Rep. Greg Stanton (D‑Ariz.) hammered Lake about her role in Arizona’s 2022 governor’s race — during which she refused to concede. “Let me be clear about something: The American people cannot believe a word you say,” Stanton said.

Lake, a former news anchor aligned with President Donald Trump, defended herself by expressing regret that Stanton was “from Arizona” and accusing major media outlets of peddling “abject lies.” She maintained that USAGM has editorial independence and dismissed the notion that it operates as a partisan tool.

Beyond the verbal sparring, Lake also outlined steps she has reportedly taken at the agency: clawing back $17 million from broadcasting stations to support USAGM’s core mission, and terminating a costly D.C. office lease to save taxpayer dollars.

Still, her confirmation as a trusted voice for the agency remains in question amid Democratic skepticism toward her leadership at a government media institution.

Watch video of the exchange below, or by clicking this link.

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