DOJ Lowers Charges — Fury Erupts

A taxpayer-funded Voice of America worker spent 15 months phoning death threats to a Trump ally in Congress — and only now is he headed to prison.

Story Snapshot

Former Voice of America employee Seth Jason admitted making eight violent threats against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene over 15 months.
Jason pleaded guilty to two federal charges after repeatedly threatening to kill Greene, her staff, and her family.
All eight calls came from inside Voice of America headquarters, raising hard questions about oversight at the government-run outlet.
The case highlights a sharp rise in threats against public officials and the need for equal protection of conservative voices.

VOA Employee’s Threat Campaign Finally Meets Accountability

Federal prosecutors say former Voice of America employee Seth Jason, 64, spent fifteen months calling the district offices of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene in Georgia and promising to kill her, her staff, and her family.^[8] According to the indictment, he used lines tied to studios and control rooms inside Voice of America headquarters in Washington, D.C., where he worked as a longtime employee.^[8] Investigators say eight calls were made between October 11, 2023, and January 21, 2025.^[8]

The United States Department of Justice says Jason has now pleaded guilty in federal court to two crimes: interstate communications with a threat to kidnap or injure and anonymous telecommunications harassment.^[2] Court records and press reports explain that the original indictment listed four charges, including influencing a federal official by threat and by threatening a family member, but prosecutors accepted a plea on two counts instead.^[2] This still leaves a documented pattern of threats aimed at a sitting member of Congress.

What Jason Threatened — And How Far He Went

Court filings say Jason’s language was graphic and direct. In one threat, reported from court documents, he talked about shooting Greene “between the eyes” with an AK-47 rifle.^[6] Prosecutors also describe ugly voicemails left as the 2025 presidential inauguration neared.^[2] On January 8, 2025, he warned Greene would not “see the inaugural” because she, her staff, and her family would be dead.^[2] The calls were not random outbursts; they escalated over time.

On January 21, 2025, the day after the inauguration, Jason left another voicemail saying Greene and her staff “were as good as dead” and telling them to “make your last will ready, because we are coming after you, and the only thing you’re going to hear is bang…I’m yearning to hear you cry for your last breath.”^[2] Investigators say he hid behind fake first names like “Kevin” and “Ruben” to mask his identity and make the calls sound like anonymous rage.^[6] Every call, though, traced back to the same taxpayer-funded building.

Voice of America’s Silence and Taxpayer Responsibility

The indictment and Justice Department release both stress that each one of the eight threatening calls came from inside Voice of America headquarters while Jason was on site working for the outlet.^[2] Voice of America is a government-funded media organization, paid for by American taxpayers, and it operates under rules that are supposed to keep it neutral and professional. Yet the outlet has not publicly explained how a longtime studio supervisor could use internal phone lines to wage a personal terror campaign against a conservative lawmaker.^[8]

News coverage repeats that Jason was a “former” employee once the case became public, but there is no sign of a broader internal review in the available record.^[8] For many conservatives, that silence fits a troubling pattern: when threats target someone like Greene, the system eventually reacts, but the institutions involved avoid serious self-criticism. Taxpayers are left wondering what safeguards failed and whether anything has changed to protect other officials who challenge the permanent bureaucracy.

Rising Threats Against Officials — And Who Pays the Price

This case lands in a wider surge of threats and harassment against public officials of both parties. The United States Capitol Police report that their threat assessment section opened 9,474 cases involving concerning statements and direct threats against members of Congress, their families, and staff in 2024, up from already high levels in past years.^[17] The Brennan Center notes that threats to lawmakers are now about ten times higher than they were in 2016, showing a long-term trend, not a one-off spike.^[16]

⚖️ One detail from the sentencing hearing has left a lot of people shaken.

According to reports, Karmelo Anthony's parents were not present when he was sentenced. They also were not in the courtroom when Austin Metcalf's family delivered their victim impact statements.

During… pic.twitter.com/wPj61wQnHk

— MKKM (@michekyakeymii) June 12, 2026

Research on political violence finds that top national figures, including President Trump, have drawn a huge share of violent rhetoric and threats against Republican leaders.^[22] That climate makes it even more important that law enforcement treat every serious threat as a crime, no matter who is targeted. When a government media employee uses federal property to menace a Trump ally in Congress, a firm sentence is not only about punishment. It also sends a signal that political violence and intimidation will not decide who gets to speak in America.^[21]