Two lawsuits challenge Trump's taxpayer-funded ads, alleging they
violate propaganda law
[October 08, 2026]
By ALI SWENSON
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two lawsuits filed Wednesday challenged President
Donald Trump's recent series of federally funded television
advertisements, which promote his political message while costing
taxpayers millions of dollars.
The Democratic National Committee was first to sue the Republican
administration, alleging the ads are illegal government-sponsored
propaganda and accusing Trump of personally directing them. Later
Wednesday, a coalition including the nonpartisan watchdog Common Cause
filed a separate lawsuit, also alleging an illegal misuse of funds.
Both complaints asked federal judges to stop the use of federal funds to
pay for the ads. The lawsuits represented the first legal challenges to
the TV spots, which have faced bipartisan backlash for glorifying Trump
and promoting his campaign message with November's midterm elections
less than a month away.
The ads, which began airing in September, already have cost more than
$12 million to run, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact. The
Department of Homeland Security awarded a $20 million contract for the
campaign.
Responding Monday to the criticism, Trump defended them as “positive
promotion for our Great U.S.A.” but said he’d start paying for them
using his MAGA Inc. super PAC going forward.
But on Tuesday, a fifth ad began airing with a notice it was paid for by
the U.S. government. It promoted Trump’s military actions to capture
Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela earlier this year. The same day, Trump made
it clear he hasn’t committed to reimbursing any money that has already
been spent, telling reporters “we’ll decide.”
DNC Chair Ken Martin said in a statement that Trump is misusing taxpayer
dollars in “a last-ditch attempt to save Republicans in November.”
“Americans deserve better than to have their hard-earned tax dollars
used for Trump’s illegal schemes," he added.
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A person familiar with the ad campaign who was not authorized to
speak publicly said the ad buys placed prior to Trump’s pledge to
start paying for them with his super PAC will end this week. Outside
groups will begin to pay at that point, the person said.
The second lawsuit was filed by the legal advocacy group Democracy
Forward on behalf of Common Cause, a New York public employee union
and a Democratic state legislative candidate in Alabama.
Taxpayers “shouldn’t have to foot the bill for the president’s
politics,” said Skye Perryman, who leads Democracy Forward.
Omar Noureldin, senior vice president of policy and litigation at
Common Cause, said his organization doesn’t trust that Trump will
stick to outside money for future ads. He cited Tuesday's new ad as
proof that the government-sponsored ads were still being scheduled.
“Even if he said that moving forward, he plans to have his super PAC
pay for this, that’s not enough for us,” Noureldin said. “We are not
going to take the president’s word for it.”
Legal experts have suggested the ads run afoul of a federal statute
against congressionally appropriated money being used for “publicity
or propaganda,” and potentially other federal laws. The Homeland
Security money tapped for the ads comes from a $175 million package
Congress gave to the department as part of Trump’s immigration
enforcement agenda.
The White House has defended the ads as public service announcements
akin to what past administrations have done to promote various
policies. But the recent ads differ from many past public service
announcements because they aren’t aimed at helping members of the
public benefit from specific government programs. One of the ads is
a near replica of a 2024 ad that Trump ran during his presidential
reelection campaign.
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