WASHINGTON—U.S. Representative Greg Stanton (D-Ariz.) took failed Arizona gubernatorial candidate, failed U.S. Senate Candidate and current Senior Advisor for U.S. Agency for Global Media, Kari Lake, to task during a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing.
Stanton said it’s impossible for Lake to perform her duties as head of Voice of America and the USAGM when she has lied so shamelessly about her own election—and detailing her most egregious election denials.
Full text of Stanton’s remarks as prepared is below, and video is HERE.
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Thank you Mr. Chair.
Ms. Lake: your actions are eroding American soft power around the globe.
We shouldn’t be dismantling the agency that combats propaganda from the Chinese Communist Party, the Kremlin and Tehran. Especially now, we need to be able to broadcast facts that counter Iranian state-run media’s spin. That’s essential to American long-term interests.
Your job is to tell the people of the world the truth about America. Because of that, there’s a more fundamental issue I want to address today: Character.
You see, Ms. Lake, we’ve both been public figures in Arizona for a long time. I’ve seen you in action, including your behavior in the last two elections. Let me be clear about something: The American people cannot believe a word you say.
You ran for Arizona governor in 2022, and you lost fair and square. Instead of conceding, you embarrassed yourself and our state by lying – again and again, for years – blaming everything under the sun for your loss except your own toxic politics. You lie about that election to this day.
1. You lied about signatures on mail-in ballots not matching those on file. Proven wrong.
2. You lied about ballots being intentionally misprinted and then rejected in Republican areas. Total BS.
3. You lied and said hundreds of thousands of ballots were mishandled. Zero evidence.
4. You claimed fake ballots were snuck into batches before they were counted. Come on.
You’ve repeated these lies again and again. You’ve said: “I am the duly elected governor, they just stole it.” Give me a break.
Ms. Lake, your new role requires you to tell the truth. For decades, whenever authoritarians and dictators suppressed their people and claimed victory in fraudulent elections, Voice of America countered their lies.
I can’t imagine how people fighting for democracy today around the world can trust someone who lied so shamelessly about her own election.
QUESTION: Ms. Lake, to regain a semblance of your credibility, are you finally ready to admit you lost the 2022 Arizona governor election?
You didn’t just lie in the press, you took those lies to court and lost again and again.
Every one of your lawsuits failed - in Arizona courts and in federal courts.
One federal judge stated you were, “furthering false narratives that baselessly undermine public trust.”
And you weren’t just wrong. You were formally sanctioned for lying to the court!
QUESTION: Ms. Lake, you’ve been sanctioned twice for providing false information to courts of law haven’t you?
In December 2022, you were sanctioned by a U.S. District Court judge for making “false, misleading, and unsupported factual assertions.”
And again in May of 2023, you were sanctioned by the Arizona Supreme Court for making “made false factual statements.”
You were sued for defamation by a Republican election official, Stephen Richer. He and his family were subjected to harassment and even death threats because of your lies.
You told your supporters Richer and a fellow Republican County Supervisor, Bill Gates, “sabotaged Election Day.” You accused them of deliberately printing the wrong image on ballots to jam tabulators and injecting hundreds of thousands of phony ballots. What a joke.
And here’s the thing: when it came down to it, you chickened out and refused to defend your lies in court. Instead, you decided to take a default judgement!
You’re an adjudicated liar and a two-time loser.
I just have one more question for you: You lost to Governor Hobbs in 2022. You lost badly to Senator Gallego in 2024. Well Arizona has another election for governor next year… can you do us all a favor and run again?
I yield back.