According to CNN, President Trump stated on October 5 local time that he would no longer use taxpayer funds to pay for a series of promotional television advertisements, instead opting to pay for the advertisements at his own expense.
On that day, Trump posted on the ‘Truth Social’ platform: ‘The radical left is very dissatisfied with my advertising. I believe these ads are positive propaganda about great America, and it is quite normal to use American funds to pay for the advertisements.’
"Even if we do this, they will not be satisfied. Therefore, I decided to continue placing patriotic theme ads, funded by myself and the funds raised by my "Make America Great Again" committee (Maga Inc). Trump wrote."
Before Trump made this change, his administration was criticized for spending tens of millions of dollars on television advertising. Both Republican and Democratic lawmakers questioned this decision. The White House argued that these advertisements were considered public service announcements.
According to advertising monitoring agency AdImpact, as of October 5th, the Trump administration has invested at least $10.1 million in taxpayer funds for these advertisements.
An advertisement titled “Resilience” portrays Trump’s journey from a young person in the New York real estate market to the President of the United States. CNN
As of last week, the Trump administration has produced at least 13 campaign-style advertisements promoting Trump himself and his policies. The advertisements that have not yet been aired include three short films focusing on military operations involving the U.S., Iran, and Venezuela. There is also an advertisement titled "God Created Trump," as well as an advertisement that recaps Trump’s hosting of the Ultimate Fighting Championship at the White House.
CNN obtained 12 ad snippets totaling from 15 seconds to 3 minutes, with two of them already aired. At the bottom of each advertisement, text will be labeled: "Produced by US government funding."
Although each advertisement has a different theme, many of the images feature Trump and include audio commentary that praises him.
Reports indicate that Trump personally directed the production of these video advertisements. Sources familiar with the matter and Trump's advisors revealed that most of the ads were created by the White House Video Team, which is part of the White House Communications Office and is responsible for government public relations. Trump was involved in selecting the footage used for the ads. At least one of the advertisements was produced by a community that uses Trump-related memes.
The regulatory agency noted that these advertisements clearly violated the US Appropriations Act. This law prohibits the use of federal funds for promotional or partisan messaging. However, it is not yet clear whether external groups have the legal authority to file a lawsuit.
Although the advertisement was criticized by both parties, regulatory agencies believe that Congress, which has the most conditions for holding accountability, did not take action to stop the advertisement before the midterm elections.
