BREAKING: LifeSite board chair says John-Henry Westen's removal is 'null and void'
The move was 'not carried out in accordance with the bylaws of our organization,' Westen has said.
LifeSite's Board Chairman Dominic Ismert has informed company co-founder John-Henry Westen that after seeking legal advice he believes Westen’s removal as CEO earlier this month was illegal.
“The vote to remove me from the Board of LifeSiteNews and from CEO was not carried out in accordance with the bylaws of our organization,” Westen said in an email that he sent to all LifeSite staff and board members today via a personal account, after speaking with Ismert.
“Therefore until such time as the Board convenes to make a lawful determination on the matter I remain both CEO and on the Board of LifeSiteNews,” he added.
The email — the text of which is below — was promptly removed from staff inboxes by new co-CEO Robert Hoover, who sent employees a new email condemning the move while also defending Westen’s removal.
Dear LifeSite staff, and Board Members,
The Chairman of the Board of LifeSiteNews Dominic Ismert has informed me that after legal counsel he has determined that the vote to remove me from the Board of LifeSiteNews and from CEO was not carried out in accordance with the bylaws of our organization and thus is null and void.
Therefore until such time as the Board convenes to make a lawful determination on the matter I remain both CEO and on the Board of LifeSiteNews.
I am hereby directing Robert Hoover, X and Y to restore all the privileges of my position including but not limited to access to Teams immediately.
An emergency board meeting has been called for July 22, 2025.
While this situation has been most difficult for all of us, we know that ‘all things work for good for those who love Him’ so let us pray and see what the Lord does in this circumstance.
In Christ and His beloved Mother,
JH
A ‘tyrannical’ work environment ensues
Hoover immediately implemented what some staffers are calling a "tyrannical company-wide lockdown.” The lockdown has instilled great fear, worry, and even anger.
Hoover ominously warned the anxious staff members in his email that "some individuals may temporarily lose access to [Microsoft] Teams and email.”
Those remarks were seen by some as an attempt to "smoke out" those who are still friendly to Westen.
Another move implemented by Hoover — who previously worked at Microsoft and has no prior experience in Catholic media — is his crackdown on editors from publishing stories. All articles are now screened before publication, apparently by higher-ranking “management” officials — this had never been company practice prior to this week.
Is LifeSite now censoring journalists?
Potentially related to the new “tyrannical” policies being implemented by Hoover, earlier today I noticed that I could not view ANY stories on the LifeSite webpage. Despite multiple attempts, I was repeatedly met with a message that reads, "access forbidden for address.”
It seems that Hoover has somehow prevented my IP address from visiting LifeSiteNews.com.
One possible reason for this — if it turns out to be true — is that I have been critical of LifeSite’s senior legal counsel Keith Fournier on social media (follow me on X here). See below:
This story is developing…
This is insane (so insane it sounds like something out of a movie). If anyone ever doubted that John-Henry Westen's removal came as a result some sort of a coup or takeover at LifeSite, this proves our suspicions were true. It's hard to believe this is happening at a company that once seemed so faithful.
This is complete CHAOS, but even the chaos plays a role: “Solve et coagula” (“dissolve and coagulate”), meaning you must destroy the organization before you can remake it into something else.
Cui bono?
Obviously, those who desire to protect the conciliar revolution, who were shaken that an organization the size of LSN should progress from COVID resistance, to Vigano endorsement, to running persuasive articles questioning the legitimacy of Francis (and by implication, all the conciliar “popes”).
So this much at least is clear: The ousting of Westen and Kokx was an orchestrated coup.
Had LSN stopped at simply rejecting the COVID farce, and supporting Vigano, the puppet masters might yet have tolerated them. But questioning the legitimacy of the conciliar hierarchy and its entire counterfeit edifice, which is suppressing true Catholicism, is simply too dangerous to go unchecked.
Outside interested parties (modernist Rome, Jews, government, Freemasons, etc) are all threatened in their gains since 1965, and that simply can’t be allowed, as it risks inciting a counterrevolution which might bring back the true Catholicism they have temporarily succeeded in eclipsing.
Only fake trads/good cops (Schneider/Burke/captured SSPX) can be allowed. But a major organization going sede is far too dangerous for the Revolutionaries to ignore.
So, solve et coagula.