Trump Sued by Democratic Party Over Taxpayer-Funded TV Ads

The Democratic Party’s national organization filed a lawsuit accusing the Trump administration of unlawfully using government money to pay for video advertisements lauding the president that have been airing on cable and broadcast television stations across the US in recent weeks.

The complaint filed Wednesday in federal court in Washington by the Democratic National Committee alleges the ad campaign violates a congressional prohibition on using taxpayer dollars for unauthorized “publicity or propaganda.”

President Donald Trump has faced significant blowback for the ads, mostly from Democrats and administration critics but also from Senate Republican Leader John Thune, who told reporters that he approved of the message but that “it shouldn’t be paid for with taxpayer dollars.”

Read More: Trump Vows to Pay for Ads Praising Him With Personal, PAC Funds

Trump announced this week that he would use personal funds and money from his super political action committee for future ads. But the DNC alleged that more ads already have been produced by a government contractor.

The ads running to date feature positive images and messages about Trump and his presidency, and include a disclosure that they were “Paid for by the United States Government.” One ad includes a montage of photos of the president over the song “Love Me” by Christian Berishaj, who performs under the name JMSN.

Berishaj notified the White House that he hadn’t given permission to use the song and sent a cease-and-desist letter to Trump’s MAGA Inc. superPAC on Tuesday demanding they cancel any plans to use it in future ads.

The White House defended the TV spots as “presidential public service announcements” and pointed out that Trump is not running for office in the Nov. 3 elections and that the ads don’t support any specific candidates.

According to the New York Times, Trump directed Russell Vought, director of the Office of Management and Budget, to use government funds to pay for the ads, and that the $20 million contract tapped money from the Department of Homeland Security.

Congressional Democrats and California Attorney General Rob Bonta have called for investigations by government ethics offices, and liberal-leaning advocacy groups have filed complaints with regulatory agencies and sought records about the ads under a government transparency law.

The case is Democratic National Committee v. Trump, 26-cv-3506, US District Court, District of Columbia (Washington).