Trump says taxpayers will no longer fund TV ads that praise him

Move comes after ethics experts criticised three nationally broadcast ads and called for independent investigations.

Al Jazeera2026-10-06 01:51查看原文 ↗

Move comes after ethics experts criticised three nationally broadcast ads and called for independent investigations.

US President Donald Trump gestures to supporters during a rally at Butler High School in Vandalia, Ohio, US, on October 3, 2026 [Nathan Howard/ Reuters]

United States President Donald Trump has said he will stop using taxpayer funds for television advertisements featuring him after widespread criticism of the campaign-style spots.

In a post on his social media site on Monday, Trump defended the advertisements, which cost at least $1.5m in federal funds and were aired ahead of the US November midterm elections.

list 1 of 4 Trump’s approval hits new low among Hispanic voters ahead of midterms

list 2 of 4 Trump officials pursue record number of cases to strip US citizenship

list 3 of 4 Mexico seeks evidence of border shooting that prompted US troop deployment

list 4 of 4 Trump blames Democrats and Ukraine for soaring US fuel prices, not Iran war

Trump said he considered the advertisements to be “a positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.”, but that they would no longer be funded by taxpayers but by either him or his MAGA PAC,

MAGA Inc. is Trump’s political war chest and had amassed more than $400m by the end of July.

The announcement came as ethics experts and lawmakers from both ⁠parties have criticised the three nationally broadcast advertisements and called for independent investigations.

The advertisements have run during football games as recently as Sunday and during other programming.

One features Trump declaring that “America will never be a communist country”, ⁠while a chorus repeats the words “love me”. Another combines ⁠images of Mount Rushmore with footage of Trump praising a “golden age of America”.

The advertisements end with a disclaimer saying they were paid for by the US government.

Democratic lawmakers said last month that the White House transferred $20m in Homeland Security Department funds to air ⁠the advertisements, including one that closely resembles a 2024 Trump ⁠campaign ad, and sought independent probes.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Monday called ‌for an independent investigation, calling it a “staggering misuse of public funding and breach of public trust” after the calls for a probe.

Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, a ‌Republican ‌named to his position by Trump, last week said the advertisements were appropriate and rejected a request to investigate them.

此前，伦理专家批评了三则在全国播出的广告，并呼吁进行独立调查。

2026年10月3日，美国总统唐纳德·特朗普在俄亥俄州范达利亚市巴特勒高中举行的集会上向支持者做出手势。[Nathan Howard/路透社]

美国总统唐纳德·特朗普表示，在竞选式电视广告遭到广泛批评后，他将停止使用纳税人的钱来投放以他为主角的电视广告。

周一，特朗普在其社交媒体网站上发帖为这些广告辩护。这些广告至少花费了150万美元的联邦资金，并在美国11月中期选举前播出。

（共4条，第1条）特朗普在西班牙裔选民中的支持率在中期选举前跌至新低

特朗普政府官员发起创纪录数量的剥夺美国公民身份案件，名单共4条，这是其中第2条。

墨西哥寻求证据，以证明边境枪击事件引发了美军部署（共4项，此为第3项）

特朗普将美国燃油价格飙升归咎于民主党和乌克兰，而非伊朗战争（共4条，此为第4条）。

特朗普表示，他认为这些广告是“对我们伟大的美国的一种积极宣传”，但这些广告将不再由纳税人资助，而是由他本人或他的“让美国再次伟大”政治行动委员会（MAGA PAC）资助。

MAGA Inc. 是特朗普的政治资金库，截至 7 月底已积累了超过 4 亿美元。

此前，两党的伦理专家和立法者都对三则在全国播出的广告提出了批评，并呼吁进行独立调查。

这些广告最近一次是在上周日的足球比赛期间以及其他节目播出期间。