Trump says he will stop using taxpayer funds for ads after bipartisan pushback
The ads, which tout Trump and his policies, could have violated US laws barring public government funds being spent on political advertising.
Trump says he will stop using taxpayer funds for ads after bipartisan pushback
President Donald Trump said he will stop using US taxpayer money to pay for television ads he has appeared in, after criticism from both parties.
“The Radical Left is upset with the fact that I am taking Ads, which I consider to be a positive promotion for our Great U.S.A., and paying for them with U.S.A. money,” he said on social media Monday.
Trump said it is “a rather standard thing to do,” but added that he has decided to fund the “Patriotic Ads” himself, along with money raised through his MAGA Inc super political action committee.
The ads, which praise the president and his policies, have drawn criticism and questions about whether they are legal because of rules barring the use of government money for political advertising.
More than a dozen ads have aired in recent weeks, with some highlighting Trump’s tax cuts, US manufacturing and law and order. In them, Trump also promises action against the “deep state” and others he sees as enemies.
In one ad, Trump says, “We will cast out the communists, Marxists, and fascists. We will throw off the sick political class that hates our country. We will rout the fake news media, and we will liberate America from these villains once and for all”.
The White House has rejected the criticism, describing the ads as “educational” and saying they are not propaganda, but public service announcements.
It has cited ads from previous administrations, including those under former President Barack Obama about his healthcare plan and one under former President Joe Biden encouraging people to get Covid-19 vaccines.
However, legal experts say past US government advertising has usually focused on public health or national emergencies.
“It’s difficult to see what legitimate government purpose is served by spending taxpayer dollars on ads whose only apparent purpose is to promote the president,” legal ethics expert Margaret Dylus-Yukins told the BBC.
Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire introduced a measure, which was blocked by a Republican, condemning the administration for using government funds for the ads.
“It is the sense of the Senate that the advertisements promoting President Donald Trump that aired in September 2026, which included the direct language ‘paid for by the U.S. Government,’ should not be paid for by the United States government,” the measure reads.
The ads have drawn criticism from both sides of the aisle.
Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters on Monday that while “I like the message ... it shouldn’t be paid for with taxpayer dollars”.
Senator John Kennedy, a Republican, said on CBS News on Sunday that politicians should not use taxpayer money for promotional ads.
“I don’t think any public official, including President Trump or Kristi Noem or John Kennedy, should spend public money on private ads for themselves,” the Louisiana lawmaker said.