NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump must cancel all remaining television ads paid for with millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money to promote its political message, a federal judge ordered Sunday evening, even as the administration announced the ad campaign was nearing its end.
U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Rochon in New York joined a coalition, including the nonpartisan watchdog Common Cause, that challenged the ads and called them an illegal misappropriation of funds. She asked the administration to cancel all remaining ads, including those that would air Sunday night, by granting a temporary restraining order.
“Defendants shall not enter into, renew or expand any agreement authorizing the development, creation, dissemination, placement or distribution of the challenged advertisements” during the two-week term of her order, the judge said.
The White House did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment Sunday evening. In a court filing Saturday evening, the Justice Department argued that the temporary restraining order was unnecessary because “the alleged offending conduct will end tomorrow.”
The Department of Homeland Security took $20 million of taxpayer money for announcements. Legal experts suggested this violated a federal law prohibiting the use of funds appropriated by Congress for “advertising or propaganda” and potentially other laws.
“We are pleased that the court acted quickly to prevent more taxpayer dollars from being used for such blatantly illegal political propaganda,” the plaintiffs said in a statement released by Democracy Forward, the nonprofit legal organization representing them. “There is no legal justification – and no precedent – for the President to use the machinery of government and funds set aside by Congress for other purposes to influence election results that advance his own agenda. »
In a court filing Saturday, senior DHS official Holly Mehringer wrote that the money came from funds appropriated by Congress and “available, among other things, to ‘commemorate border security efforts and events.'”
The White House defended the ads as public service announcements, similar to what previous administrations have done to promote various policies. But the recent ads differ from many past public service announcements because they are not aimed at helping members of the public benefit from specific government programs.
The ads, which began airing in late September, glorify Trump and echo his midterm political message. One features a clip of Trump speaking about the threat of communism and another is a rebroadcast of an ad of his last presidential campaign. The campaign’s fifth ad began airing Tuesday and focuses on action by the Trump administration. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro.
The use of public funds to finance the ads has drawn strong criticism, particularly from some members of the Republican Party.
“This should not be paid for with taxpayer dollars,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters.
The Democratic National Committee separately sued the Republican administration over the ads.
Amid backlash, Trump said he would begin paying for ads from a campaign account. A White House official said there were no immediate plans to reimburse the government for money already spent.
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Johnson reported from Seattle. Associated Press journalists Collin Binkley in Washington and Ali Swenson contributed.
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