TV viewers may be seeing something they've never seen before: a campaign-style commercial promoting President Trump and stamped as funded by the US government. The cable ad, airing on Fox News in Los Angeles and Newsmax in Chicago, strings together upbeat images of Trump, campaign slogans, and snippets of his speeches. "Together we will defeat communism, socialism, and Marxism in America," Trump says, invoking movements he and other Republicans have accused Democrats of supporting. The ad closes with UFC chief Dana White praising Trump over White House footage and military flyovers. A disclosure line says it was "Paid for by the U.S. Government," the Washington Post reports, and that's the issue.
The spots would seem to violate a long-standing federal ban on using taxpayer money for "publicity or propaganda" that's "designed to aid a political party or candidates," in the words of the Government Accountability Office. Rep. Jamie Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, called the sponsorship "blatantly unethical" and suggested on social media it could amount to a felony misuse of government resources and violate the Hatch Act, per the Hill. Republican Sen. Thom Tillis said the ad is inappropriate and likened it to something Viktor Orban, the right-wing former prime minister of Hungary, would do. The administration offered a defense.
"These public service announcements are about reminding Americans to love their country and understand what makes it worth defending, at home, at our borders, and abroad," a statement said, per the AP. An artist whose song plays in the background—"Love Me" by JMSN—also objected Thursday; Christian Berishaj said he'd never allow his music to be used in a political ad. There is little modern precedent for an overtly political ad underwritten by the government, per the Post, though past administrations have been rebuked for skirting propaganda rules with video news segments and public-health campaigns.
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