President Trump reversed course on Monday and announced that his super PAC would now pay for the television ads promoting him that have been airing nationwide at taxpayer expense.
In a post on his social media platform, Mr. Trump wrote, “I have decided to do the Patriotic Ads, among others, and pay for them myself, and with money I raised for MAGA, Inc.”
More than $10 million in taxpayer-funded ads have run since September, according to AdImpact, the ad-tracking service. The ads, which are running on cable and network television, were paid for through a $20 million contract that used funds from the Department of Homeland Security.
Democrats — and some Republicans — have criticized the ads as a possible violation of federal laws for using taxpayer funds for “publicity or propaganda purposes.” At least one of the ads featured footage that originally had appeared in a 2024 Trump campaign video.
The New York Times wrote over the weekend that Mr. Trump had personally instructed his budget director to use taxpayer money for TV ads.
Mr. Trump referred to the backlash in his post.
“The Radical Left is upset with the fact that I am taking Ads, which I consider to be a positive promotion for our Great U.S.A., and paying for them with U.S.A. money,” he wrote, defending them as “a rather standard thing to do.”
The White House did not immediately respond to an email for comment or how the president’s super PAC would pay for the ads. A spokesman for MAGA Inc. did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Trump’s political committee can afford it: MAGA Inc. entered September with about $415 million on hand. MAGA Inc and two super PACs affiliated with it have since set aside about $194 million for advertising ahead of November, according to AdImpact data.
Mr. Trump had defended the use of taxpayer money for the spots just five days earlier. Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, the president said: “If somebody said that that’s wrong, I’ll gladly pay the money.”
“But these are ads for the country,” he said. “You have to understand. I’m not promoting a candidate. I’m not promoting myself because I’m not running for office. I’m promoting the country.”
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