The Daily Show’s Jordan Klepper has blown apart the White House’s defense of using taxpayer money to pay for what is essentially a campaign ad for Donald Trump.
During Tuesday night’s episode, Klepper discussed the controversy over the fawning, partisan ads featuring the disclaimer “paid for by the U.S. government,” which have aired in the run-up to the midterm elections.
“That is messed up. The government shouldn’t be spending taxpayer dollars on campaign ads for President Trump. It should be spending that money on figuring out how to put water in the reflecting pool,” Klepper said.
“Spending taxpayer money on a campaign ad is clearly indefensible. So, let’s see how the White House ‘defensibles’ it.”
Klepper then showed a statement from the White House rejecting criticism of the commercials as campaign ads “because Trump is not even on the ballot” in the Nov. 3 elections and “there is no call to action.”
“Right, right. It can’t be a campaign ad because Trump is not even on the ballot,” Klepper said. “It’s just I feel like I heard someone say something different.”
The show then aired a clip of Trump saying precisely that during a rally in front of his supporters: “So I’m asking you to pretend that I’m on the ballot. I’m on the ballot. I’m on it.”
Federal law prohibits the use of federal funds for “publicity or propaganda purposes,” including communications that are “purely partisan” and “designed to aid a political party or candidates” – which is what these commercials have been accused of.
Trump has frequently urged his MAGA base to “pretend” he is on the ballot in the midterms in a bid to boost Republican turnout and prevent an expected GOP electoral wipeout. The president has long faced the issue of large sections of his loyal supporters not voting outside presidential election years.
Klepper mocked the contradiction in the White House’s defense, as Trump constantly demands that his voters treat the midterms as a referendum on his presidency.
“He didn’t just say it. He said it three times in a row. He’s trying to Beetlejuice himself onto the ballot,” he said.
Klepper also blew apart the White House’s defense that the ads featuring the president are not taxpayer-funded campaign ads, as one of them—a black-and-white video of Trump walking down a corridor and describing a “final battle” against “villains” in the U.S.—is almost an exact copy of an actual 2024 campaign commercial released by Trump.
Klepper added that the White House should have probably removed one line from the 2024 ad, which featured Trump vowing to “expel the warmongers” from government, from the latest taxpayer-funded ad.
“That warmongers line hits different in 2026, doesn’t it?” Klepper said. “Major ‘O.J. Simpson looking for the real killer’ vibes on that one.”
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