WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump does not plan to reimburse the federal government for television ads promoting his agenda that he financed with taxpayer funds, according to the White House, even after saying he would have his Super PAC start paying for the controversial ads.
A White House official told USA TODAY that Trump was not referring to any reimbursement when, in an Oct. 5 Truth Social post, he said he plans to pay for the ads with money from MAGA Inc., a Super PAC operated by his allies.
More than $10 million in government-funded ads have aired since Sept. 23, according to AdImpact, which tracks spending on political ads. The money came from the Department of Homeland Security, which awarded a $20 million government contract to an advertising
agency called LMD Agency, Inc. to carry out the advertising campaign.
Federal law prohibits the use of government funds to pay for political advertising, and the ads, which are airing a month before the election, have sparked bipartisan criticism. The White House has argued that the ads are "public service announcements," not political ads, because they don't reference the Nov. 3 election or any particular candidate.
A day after promising on Truth Social to pay for the ads through his PAC, Trump on Oct. 6 said he hadn't made a final determination.
"Well, the ads were really good, they were promotion for the country, done by many presidents before, so we will decide," Trump said. Hours later, he told reporters "there's no reason" for the government to stop paying for the ads but added, "We have a lot of money in MAGA Inc."
One of the ads features Trump urging Americans to "defeat communism," while touting his economic record and personal resilience, as a choir in the background recites the verse "Love me." Attorneys for musical artist JMSN, whose song "Love me" is featured in the ad, sent a cease-and-desist letter to the White House on Sept. 28 demanding that the administration stop using his song.
Another ad shows Trump delivering remarks at Mount Rushmore during this year's Fourth of July celebration. "This is only the beginning of the golden age of America," Trump says in the ad.
One of the most recent ads lauds the U.S. war in Iran and features audio from Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth. There is also an ad identical to a commercial Trump aired during the 2024 presidential election. Trump, narrating this ad as well, warns of a "final battle" for Americans to defeat "the deep state," Marxists and other "villains."
Each ad ends with the statement: "Paid for by the U.S. government."
Annual appropriations acts approved by Congress prohibit public money paying for political advertisements and propaganda, and the Hatch Act restricts federal employees from engaging in political activity. To apparently skirt the provisions in appropriation funds, the Trump administration has used money from the One Big Beautiful Bill, Trump's sprawling tax and spending legislation approved by only Republicans in Congress in 2025.
To argue that the ads aren't political, White House officials have emphasized that Trump is not on the November ballot. However, the president has urged his supporters to "pretend" he's on the ballot in a bid to energize them about an election that is showing signs of a potential blue wave for Democrats.
The White House has also sought to compare Trump's ads to previous government-run ad campaigns of past presidents; but whereas those focused on specific government policies, Trump's commercials are focused foremost on him and his political agenda.
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump does not plan to reimburse government for taxpayer-funded ads
