Trump says his super PAC will pay for taxpayer-funded ads that sparked
backlash for glorifying him
[October 06, 2026]
By WILL WEISSERT
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Monday that he will stop
using taxpayer funds for television advertisements glorifying himself
that sparked a major backlash, and instead tap his super PAC to cover
costs going forward.
In a post on his social media site, Trump defended the ads, which cost
at least $1.5 million in federal funds and have drawn intense criticism.
Trump said they were “positive promotion for our Great U.S.A.”
“This is a rather standard thing to do,” the president wrote, while
blaming intense criticism for using taxpayer funds on the ads on the
“Radical Left.” But the president added that he’d “decided to do the
Patriotic Ads, among others, and pay for them myself, and with money I
raised for MAGA, Inc."
That is Trump's political war chest, which had amassed more than $400
million by the end of July. Trump has begun to tap it to boost
Republican candidates around the country ahead of midterm elections.
Trump provided no details on reimbursing taxpayers for ads that already
aired, nor how he would go about having his political organization pay
for such future advertising.
The White House — which had fiercely defended using taxpayer money on
spots meant to promote the president — said Monday night that MAGA Inc.
will pay for such ads going forward. It did not answer questions on how
it or Trump might prove that his political funds were being used on such
future advertising.
Trump's abrupt about-face came after leaders from both parties
criticized using taxpayer funds for the ads.
Legal experts said the ads might even violate federal statutes,
including a law against congressionally appropriated funds being used
for “publicity or propaganda” and one limiting the partisan political
activities of government employees.
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President Donald Trump arrives on Air Force One at Central Nebraska
Regional Airport, Monday, Oct. 5, 2026, in Grand Island, Neb. (AP
Photo/Alex Brandon)
The spots began airing in late September
The first ad featured clips of Trump talking about defeating
communism interspersed with onscreen text promoting the “largest tax
cuts in history,” “reigniting American manufacturing” and a call to
“defend law and order and police.”
Later the same week, a second ad began running. It showed scenic
videos of Mount Rushmore with quotes and clips from Trump’s Fourth
of July weekend speech there honoring the country’s 250th
anniversary.
A third, more recent one was virtually identical to an ad for
Trump’s Republican reelection campaign in 2024 and showed him
walking down a hallway as his voice can be heard warning of a “final
battle” against “globalists” and “warmongers.”
All ended with a message: “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”
According to AdImpact, which tracks media spending, the spots had
cost at least $1.4 million by the end of September. The actual
amount spent could be far more, depending on whether networks
classified the ad as a political ad.
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