Trump directed use of taxpayer money for ads praising his presidency

WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Donald Trump personally instructed his budget director to use taxpayer money for TV ads praising him and his presidency, setting in motion a $20 million contract that used funds from the Department of Homeland Security, according to people familiar with the matter.

The ads have run across cable and network television — on Fox News, CNN and MS Now, with football games on Fox and with national newscasts on CBS, ABC and NBC, including “Meet the Press.”

Trump was eager to see the laudatory ads on the air and told Russell Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, to come up with the money from within the government, the people said. Mark Paoletta, the budget office’s counsel, and Will Scharf, the White House counsel, both said it would be legal to use DHS funds.

The president and Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, both spoke with Markwayne Mullin, the homeland security secretary, about the ads. On Sept. 20, U.S. Customs and Border Protection — which falls under DHS — awarded the contract to LMD, a Maryland marketing firm, federal records show.

The taxpayer-funded ads have been criticized by Democrats and even some Republicans as a possible violation of federal laws against using taxpayer dollars for “publicity or propaganda purposes.”

The White House has called the ads public service announcements and said they are appropriate because there is no “call to action” to vote for any candidate. Some of his aides also noted Trump is not running for office now, in an attempt to blunt criticism of the ads as violating federal laws about the use of public money.

When pressed by a reporter Wednesday, Trump said: “If somebody said that that’s wrong, I’ll gladly pay the money.

“But these are ads for the country,” he added. “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.”

At least four spots have run so far, at a cost of about $5.5 million, and that is expected to grow, according to media tracker AdImpact and people familiar with the spending.

One ad, about the Iran war, features remarks from Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Such public service spots typically say which agency paid for them. In this case, all of the ads had an unusual tagline: “Paid for by the U.S. government.”