WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democratic National Committee sued President Donald Trump’s administration Wednesday for recent TV commercials who promoted his political message while costing taxpayers millions of dollars.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that the ads constitute illegal government-sponsored propaganda and accuses Trump of personally directing them. He is asking the court to declare the ads illegal and stop using federal funds to finance them.
Trump has faced bipartisan backlash for the ads, which glorify him and echo his campaign pitch as voters cast early ballots less than a month before the midterm elections.
The spots, which began airing in September, have already cost more than $12 million, according to media tracking firm AdImpact, with a total of $20 million coming from Department of Homeland Security funding. was exploited to pay them.
Responding to criticism Monday, Trump defended the ads as a “positive promotion for our great United States” but said he would pay for them using his MAGA Inc. super PAC in the future.
But on Tuesday, the campaign’s fifth ad began airing labeled “paid for by the U.S. government,” promoting Trump’s military actions in Venezuela earlier this year. The same day, Trump made clear that he did not undertake to reimburse all the money that has already been spent, telling journalists “we will decide”.
DNC Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement that Trump was misusing taxpayer dollars in “a last-ditch attempt to save Republicans in November.”
“Americans deserve better than to see their hard-earned tax dollars used for Trump’s illegal schemes,” he added.
Legal experts suggested the ads ran afoul of a federal law prohibiting the use of funds appropriated by Congress for “advertising or propaganda” and potentially other federal laws. The Homeland Security money used for the ads comes from a $175 million package that Congress gave the department as part of Trump’s immigration enforcement program.
The White House defended the ads as public service announcements, similar to what previous administrations have done to promote various policies. Legal experts said the recent ads differ from many past public service announcements because they are not intended to help members of the public benefit from specific government programs.
The defendants in the lawsuit — Trump, the White House, DHS and the Office of Management and Budget — did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Gn usa
