The pro-Donald Trump TV ads that recently aired were paid for with Department of Homeland Security money.
That’s according to a new report by The Wall Street Journal, which came as Democratic members of Congress have been demanding answers on the gushing spots.
The White House has claimed the ads promoting Trump ahead of the midterms were public service announcements, but critics warned the spots amount to propaganda and appear to violate federal law.
The WSJ said DHS funded the ads, according to people familiar with the matter.
Specifically, the money came from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the agency tasked with border security as well as enforcing trade and immigration regulations.
The pro-Trump ads did not focus on the border or immigration. They aired on primetime television with the disclaimers “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”
In response to the Daily Beast asking how the ads were public service announcements related to DHS, the White House responded with a generic statement.
“These public service announcements are about reminding Americans to love their country and understand what makes it worth defending, at home, at our borders, and abroad,” it read. “The ad is educational and unapologetically patriotic. We should be proud of our country.”
The Department of Homeland Security referred questions to the White House.
It comes after CNN reported that the ads were created by the in-house White House video team, and the president personally oversaw the production of ads promoting himself, including helping select the video used.
The fact that the ads were created in-house raised the prospect that White House employees may have broken the law.
At least three ads have aired in recent days with messages promoting Trump, with just weeks to go before the midterms and Trump seeing record-low approval.
The first 30-second ad aired showed multiple pictures and videos of Trump with audio of the president blasting communism, socialism, and Marxism. It also featured UFC President Dana White praising Trump and used the song “Love Me” by JMSN, who is demanding that the administration immediately stop using his song, with a cease-and-desist letter sent to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles.
The spot started airing last week across the country, including on Fox News.
In a separate one-minute ad narrated by Trump, the president declares it is “Only the beginning of the golden age of America.” The spot uses video of the president and his visit to Mount Rushmore.
The third ad is nearly identical to a Trump spot he used while campaigning for a second term in 2024. In the 30-second spot, also narrated by Trump, the president declares, “We will demolish the deep state; we will expel the warmongers from our government.” The video shows a glowering Trump walking down a hallway as audio of his words plays about the “final battle.”
Trump previously shared the nearly exact same video when he was campaigning for a second term in 2024.
After the ads started airing, senators from both parties criticized the move.
Multiple Democratic senators wrote to the White House demanding answers on how the ads were made and paid for, as critics warned members of the administration appeared to be violating the law.
On Tuesday, Democratic Sens. Patty Murray and Chris Murphy also sent a letter to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, the former MAGA senator and plumber, seeking more information over the use of DHS funds to pay for the ads.
“It has come to our attention that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may be using Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars to bankroll the obscene political ads celebrating President Trump that have aired on stations nationwide in recent days,” they wrote. “We should not have to remind you that using government funding to create or air political ads like the ones that have been running over the last few days is illegal and a shockingly corrupt misuse of taxpayer dollars.”
The senators wrote that it appears DHS dedicated $20 million for the ads so far using CBP funds from Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” and noted some $1.7 million in federal money has already been spent airing these ads.
They called the administration’s defense of using taxpayer funds for the ads “as absurd as it is offensive” and sought answers to a series of questions about how the ads were created.
“The American people deserve answers about how this president is literally stealing their tax dollars to air campaign ads celebrating himself—while doing nothing to help them afford health care or housing,” they wrote. “These ads need to immediately come off the air, taxpayers need to be paid back for this theft, and everyone responsible needs to be held accountable for this corrupt and illegal propaganda.”
