President Donald Trump on Tuesday withdrew his nomination of Leo Brent Bozell III to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM).
The withdrawal was made in a notification to Congress that said Bozell, the founder of the press watchdog organization Media Research Council, was withdrawn from consideration to serve as the Chief Executive Officer of USAGM, the global media agency that oversee the Voice of America (VOA), Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and other external broadcasters funded by the U.S. government.
Instead, Trump has nominated Bozell to serve as the U.S. Ambassador to South Africa, according to notifications submitted to Congress this week. As with his prior nomination, the post in South Africa requires confirmation by the U.S. Senate.
It isn’t clear who Trump intends to nominate to lead the USAGM. Senior policy advisor Victor Morales has been serving as the acting CEO of USAGM while Bozell’s nomination was pending, and continues to fill that role on an interim basis.
Morales is one of three named defendants in a pair of federal lawsuits filed by two entities overseen by USAGM. The lawsuits follow an Executive Order signed by Trump earlier this month, which required USAGM and six other agencies to significantly pare down their activities and lay off workers accordingly.
The first lawsuit, filed by Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, says USAGM’s decision to terminate its operational grants was unlawful because the money was specifically earmarked by Congress for that purpose. Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty operates as an independent, non-profit broadcaster primarily working in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa; by law, it receives grant money through Congressional appropriation measures, and is overseen by USAGM as a condition of its funding.
The second lawsuit was filed last Friday by employees at VOA, who allege the Executive Order and subsequent actions by the Trump administration were against the law because Congress intended to limit the influence of the Executive Branch on its broadcast activities.
In addition to Morales and USAGM, special advisor Kari Lake is named as a defendant in the lawsuits. Lake previously worked as a local TV news anchor before entering politics; she was nominated to serve as the Director of VOA earlier this year, but has worked as a special advisor to the Trump administration and USAGM while her nomination awaits Senate confirmation.
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Editor’s note: This story was updated to note that Kari Lake was nominated to serve as the Director of Voice of America; a prior version said she was nominated to the role of Director General.
