Trump barred from airing White House ‘propaganda’ ads, judge rules - The Independent

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A federal judge has blocked Donald Trump’s administration from running a series of taxpayer-funded ads that were later aired by a super PAC connected to the president.

The Democratic National Committee filed a lawsuit accusing the administration of illegally using public funds to “finance a national propaganda campaign,” among several legal challenges targeting a series of ads promoting the president and his agenda with taxpayer dollars.

After the administration was ordered in a separate case to stop running the ads, the president said he would finance the broadcasts himself, or direct his connected PAC to do so. But the ads were created by administration staff; the president had effectively tapped into taxpayer funds to produce them.

U.S. District Judge Lori AliKhan is freezing the government’s $20 million effort and ordering the administration to pull the challenged ads off air.

“The Court just delivered a victory for the rule of law and for American taxpayers,” DNC chair Ken Martin said after Wednesday’s ruling, issued less than one week before Election Day.

“Trump and his administration can no longer misuse Americans’ hard-earned dollars to run political ads while working families can’t even afford to pay for their gas and groceries,” Martin added. “Trump’s illegal and desperate attempt to save his cratering approval ratings ahead of the midterm elections only underscores how out of touch he is with the American people, who will hold him and Republicans accountable for their destructive agenda at the ballot box next week.”

The DNC’s lawsuit says the administration illegally “deprives the DNC of a fair electoral process by adding public funds to the resources available to support Republican candidates.”

“The use of public funds also places the DNC and Democratic candidates at an electoral disadvantage ... by preserving funds held by campaign committees and PACs — including MAGA Inc. — for other political expenditures,” according to the complaint.

The lawsuit alleges that several ads aired by the Trump-connected MAGA Inc. super PAC were initially produced by White House personnel, whose checks are cut with public funds.

On October 11, a federal judge in New York also blocked the administration from “using, disbursing or transferring” taxpayer funds appropriated by the Department of Homeland Security to “develop, create, disseminate, place, distribute, publish or air” the commercials for at least two weeks while that legal battle continues.

Altogether, Trump’s ads at the center of that case aired more than 16,000 times at a cost of $15.4 million in advertising expenditures through October 8, according to plaintiffs. The Department of Justice has not disputed these figures.

The White House first published the ad “Every Democrat Voted Against No Tax on Tips” on October 12. It continued to run on the White House website and YouTube channels, and Trump posted the ad to his Truth Social account on October 14.

MAGA Inc. then began airing a virtually identical ad. The only difference: a tagline indicating the Trump-connected super PAC paid for airtime: “Paid for by MAGA Inc., which is responsible for the content of this advertising” and “not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.”

It happened again days later. MAGA Inc. began airing the 90-second spot “President Trump’s Second Term: Stephen Miller” on October 20, an ad that was initially produced and aired by the White House.

“Once again, MAGA Inc. has broadcast an ad unlawfully developed by White House Office personnel, whose salaries are paid using Congressional appropriations, rather than paying to develop its own content,” lawyers for Democrats wrote in court filings.

This week, the White House published another two videos that “are blatant publicity or propaganda,” including an ad promoting “Retribution Through Success” with a montage of Trump-led military and political events, and “The Cost of Socialism,” which seeks to tie the Democratic Party to the Democratic Socialists of America, the DNC wrote in court filings.

“In any case, this video is domestic propaganda, and the use of staff time to develop the video was [illegal],” lawyers wrote.

Within the final weeks before Election Day, MAGA Inc. has spent more than a quarter of a billion on advertising to support dozens of Trump-backed congressional candidates in competitive races across the country.

The PAC dumped $277 million into last-minute TV and ‌direct mail advertising campaigns within the last six weeks, according to Federal Election Commission data.

MAGA Inc. and its connected committees have spent more than $300 ​million on the midterm campaigns thus far.

Last month, the Campaign Legal Center filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission accusing the president of making “repeated, explicit statements that he controls and directs” the PAC, despite federal law barring officeholders from soliciting, directing, or spending so-called “soft money” through affiliated committees in connection with a federal election.