President Donald Trump will not reimburse the federal government for taxpayer-funded advertisements promoting him and his administration ahead of the November midterms — and even dropped a new ad on Tuesday.
Following bipartisan backlash to the more than $10 million spent on what the White House dubbed “Patriotic Ads,” Trump announced Monday on Truth Social that his super PAC would cover the cost of the ads. But White House officials clarified on Tuesday to POLITICO that the president’s post did not mean the PAC would pay for the spots that had already aired.
The latest ad highlights the American mission to remove Venezuela’s former leader Nicolás Maduro. The minute-long spot features Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaking from a podium about the operation.
In all, Trump has spent about $11.6 million on more than a dozen ads, according to an estimate from AdImpact, an analytics firm which tracks advertising. The advertisements were reportedly paid for with funds from a $20 million contract awarded by the Department of Homeland Security. One ad is titled “God made Trump.” Another is nearly identical to a 2024 presidential campaign ad Trump aired, though it ends with the message, “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”
Lawmakers of both parties have criticized the ads for their political nature and the use of taxpayer dollars. The White House pointed out that in 2003 and 2004, the Bush administration ran a national television campaign explaining the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act to seniors. The Obama administration used national advertising to promote the Affordable Care Act, subsidies and open enrollment. And the Biden administration used television, digital, radio and print spots to promote Covid-19 vaccinations.
Trump on Tuesday also defended the ads to reporters outside the White House.
“The ads were really good. They were promotion for the country,” he said. “Done by many presidents before, so we’ll decide.”
The White House did not clarify if the president will finish airing ads on the remaining funds from the contract. In a Sept. 25 statement, the White House said the videos are “very clearly not campaign ads.”
“President Trump is not on the ballot and there is no call to action,” the White House said. “Instead, the announcements are a reminder for Americans to love their country and know why it’s worth defending — at home, at the border, and abroad.”
from White House https://ift.tt/UA3yONx
https://ift.tt/g7ty8Z1
0 Comments