Trump’s ‘final battle’ ad turns taxpayer-funded TV campaign into a growing row

White House calls it a patriotic public service — but the latest Trump commercial is almost a carbon copy of an old campaign ad

The White House has put another taxpayer-funded television commercial featuring Donald Trump on American screens — and this time the message is that “this is the final battle.”

The 30-second spot shows Trump walking slowly down a corridor in black and white while his voice attacks communists, Marxists, fascists, the political class and the “fake news media”.

It ends with the words “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”

The commercial aired during NFL broadcasts over the weekend, including Fox's Washington Commanders-Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers-Cleveland Browns games.

And then comes the awkward bit

The latest commercial is not simply similar to a Trump campaign message.

It is virtually identical to a video Trump used during his 2024 presidential campaign, although that version carried campaign branding and a request for supporters to join his political fight.

The White House version removes the campaign material and replaces it with the government funding notice.

That has made the question of whether this is genuinely a public-service announcement considerably more difficult to ignore.

Three ads — and counting

The “final battle” commercial is the third taxpayer-funded Trump-focused television advertisement to emerge in recent days.

The first promoted Trump's record and featured his attacks on communism and socialism. A second showed Trump at Mount Rushmore talking about America's achievements.

Together, the three advertisements have generated an estimated at least $1.7 million in government-funded television spending, according to AdImpact.

The White House insists they are not campaign advertisements.

Its position is that they are patriotic and educational public-service announcements, comparable with government campaigns used by previous administrations.

But the criticism is crossing party lines

Democratic lawmakers have questioned whether taxpayer money is being used for political purposes, but criticism has also come from Republicans.

Senator John Kennedy has said public officials should not be spending public money on advertisements promoting themselves, while other Republicans have also questioned the appropriateness of the campaign.

That bipartisan element gives the controversy another dimension: this is no longer simply Democrats attacking a Trump administration advertisement.

The legal question remains open

Federal spending laws contain restrictions on using government money for publicity or propaganda, while the Hatch Act also places limits on certain political activity by federal employees.

Critics argue the Trump commercials could fall foul of those restrictions.

The administration disputes that interpretation and says the advertisements are legitimate public-service announcements. The precise legal status of the campaign remains contested.

But politically, the timing is difficult to miss.

With the November midterms only weeks away, the White House is putting increasingly familiar Trump campaign imagery and language onto television — while the bill is being paid by the US government.

The “final battle” may be the latest commercial. But the bigger story is the growing fight over who is actually paying for Trump's message to America.

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State propaganda just like you might find in his pal's Russia, and arguably even worse.

39 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

State propaganda just like you might find in his pal's Russia, and arguably even worse.

the democrats are waging an existential war against the west freedom and liberty.

we know what side you are on.

Edited 10 hours ago10 hr by Yagoda

GOP Leader Thune Says Taxpayers Shouldn’t Pay for Trump TV Ads

(Bloomberg) -- Senate Republican Leader John Thune said taxpayers shouldn't be footing the bill for video advertisements lauding President Donald Trump that the administration has called "presidential public service announcements."

Thune's criticism is the latest public break by the Senate majority leader, who has until recently largely avoided public criticism of the president. Republicans face unusually strong competition to retain US Senate seats in typically stalwart GOP states such as Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Alaska and Texas.

https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/policy/articles/gop-leader-thune-says-taxpayers-204029639.html

1 hour ago, Social Media said:

Trump’s ‘final battle’ ad turns taxpayer-funded TV campaign into a growing row

White House calls it a patriotic public service — but the latest Trump commercial is almost a carbon copy of an old campaign ad

The White House has put another taxpayer-funded television commercial featuring Donald Trump on American screens — and this time the message is that “this is the final battle.”

The 30-second spot shows Trump walking slowly down a corridor in black and white while his voice attacks communists, Marxists, fascists, the political class and the “fake news media”.

It ends with the words “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”

The commercial aired during NFL broadcasts over the weekend, including Fox's Washington Commanders-Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers-Cleveland Browns games.

And then comes the awkward bit

The latest commercial is not simply similar to a Trump campaign message.

It is virtually identical to a video Trump used during his 2024 presidential campaign, although that version carried campaign branding and a request for supporters to join his political fight.

The White House version removes the campaign material and replaces it with the government funding notice.

That has made the question of whether this is genuinely a public-service announcement considerably more difficult to ignore.

Three ads — and counting

The “final battle” commercial is the third taxpayer-funded Trump-focused television advertisement to emerge in recent days.

The first promoted Trump's record and featured his attacks on communism and socialism. A second showed Trump at Mount Rushmore talking about America's achievements.

Together, the three advertisements have generated an estimated at least $1.7 million in government-funded television spending, according to AdImpact.

The White House insists they are not campaign advertisements.

Its position is that they are patriotic and educational public-service announcements, comparable with government campaigns used by previous administrations.

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But the criticism is crossing party lines

Democratic lawmakers have questioned whether taxpayer money is being used for political purposes, but criticism has also come from Republicans.

Senator John Kennedy has said public officials should not be spending public money on advertisements promoting themselves, while other Republicans have also questioned the appropriateness of the campaign.

That bipartisan element gives the controversy another dimension: this is no longer simply Democrats attacking a Trump administration advertisement.

The legal question remains open

Federal spending laws contain restrictions on using government money for publicity or propaganda, while the Hatch Act also places limits on certain political activity by federal employees.

Critics argue the Trump commercials could fall foul of those restrictions.

The administration disputes that interpretation and says the advertisements are legitimate public-service announcements. The precise legal status of the campaign remains contested.

But politically, the timing is difficult to miss.

With the November midterms only weeks away, the White House is putting increasingly familiar Trump campaign imagery and language onto television — while the bill is being paid by the US government.

The “final battle” may be the latest commercial. But the bigger story is the growing fight over who is actually paying for Trump's message to America.

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Vote for Republicans in the midterms and I'll give you $5000 if we sweep the Senate and House.
Otherwise I'll drop a nuke on Iran and start World War 3. I have a bunker and you don't. Sucks to be you "little people." You've been warned.