US court extends ban on Trump administration ads funded with public money — The Hill

A US federal court has extended until November 8 a temporary ban on an advertising campaign by President Donald Trump’s administration that was funded with money allocated to US Customs and Border Protection. Federal District Judge Jennifer Rochon extended the initial order requiring broadcasts of the ads to stop and unused ad placements to be canceled.

Campaign worth nearly $20 million

As The Hill reports, the advertising campaign, worth nearly $20 million, consisted of at least five videos promoting Trump and his policies. Several groups are challenging it in court as a likely unlawful use of taxpayer money. Critics also called the ads political propaganda.

One 30-second video features the president’s voice condemning communism, socialism, and Marxism, set to the song Love Me by JMSN. The musician said that the White House had not received his permission to use the music. The videos carried a notice stating that they were paid for by the US government.

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White House and Justice Department positions

The White House referred to a Truth Social post by Trump in which the president called such advertising fairly commonplace. He also said that he had decided to pay for patriotic advertising and other videos himself, using funds raised for MAGA Inc. The administration argued that the videos were no different from public service advertisements through which previous administrations highlighted the president’s policies and his vision for the country.

The US Department of Justice had previously insisted that the lawsuit had become moot because the advertising broadcasts were set to end on Sunday evening. The judge rejected that argument. The plaintiffs said the videos remained on air for several more hours after the initial court order. Justice Department lawyers apologized, explaining the delay by saying that some federal employees saw the decision only on Monday morning.

The Democratic National Committee also filed a separate lawsuit over the advertising campaign. A hearing in that case was scheduled for Thursday morning in a federal court in the US capital.