Donald Trump spent at least $10 million of your money on glossy ads that make Donald Trump look good, and he stopped only after lawmakers in both parties started using words like "propaganda" and "Orbán." His solution is to have his super PAC pick up the tab from now on. Whether anyone pays back the money already spent is a question the White House has declined to answer.
The Reversal, Delivered Via Truth Social
NBC News reports that Trump announced Monday that he and his super PAC will now pay for the "Patriotic Ads" rather than using federal funds. He did it the way he does everything, with a post on Truth Social that managed to sound wounded and defiant at once.
"The Radical Left is upset with the fact that I am taking Ads, which I consider to be a positive promotion for our Great U.S.A., and paying for them with U.S.A. money," Trump wrote. He called it "a rather standard thing to do" and added that "nothing will make them happy."
Read that again. The defense is that the thing is standard, and also that he's stopping the thing. If it were standard and fine, why stop? If it was a problem, why is it standard? Pick one, Mr. President.
Ten Million Dollars and a Disclaimer
AdImpact, the political ad-tracking firm, estimates the government has spent at least $10 million to air these spots, according to NBC News. The ads portray Trump in a favorable light. They carried disclaimers saying they were paid for by the U.S. government.
One of them was virtually identical to a 2024 Trump campaign ad. Let that sink in. The administration took a spot that already existed to get Trump elected, stuck a government disclaimer on it, and ran it on the public dime.
It's the rare scam that comes with its own receipt.
The Money Came From Border Enforcement, Naturally
NBC News reported last week that the ads were paid for with money intended for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Senior leaders at the agency were cut out of the decision, per the same reporting.
So the agency Trump says is the front line of national security had its money redirected to a media campaign, and its own leadership wasn't even consulted. The administration that never stops talking about the border found $20 million for TV time instead.
Public contracting records show a Maryland-based firm, LMD Agency, was awarded a $20 million contract for the new ads. The stated purpose is a "national media campaign." Not a public safety message. Not a recruiting drive. A national media campaign, as if the nation had asked for one.
Even Thom Tillis Is Using the O-Word
Here's the part that should sting. This wasn't only Democrats. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the ads "propaganda," which is the predictable line from the predictable corner.
But Sen. Thom Tillis, a North Carolina Republican who is retiring, compared Trump to former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. "There's no place for that sort of thing," Tillis said, according to NBC News.
Comparing a sitting American president to Orbán is not a gentle rebuke. Orbán built a system where state money flows into state-friendly messaging until the opposition can barely be heard. When a member of your own party reaches for that comparison, the ads didn't just look bad. They looked like a template.
The White House Defense Keeps Changing
Before the reversal, the White House insisted the ads were "clearly not political." It said the PSAs were "about reminding Americans to love their country and understand what makes it worth defending, at home, at our borders, and abroad."
After the reversal, a White House official offered a different line: "Presidential Public service announcements are nothing new. Administrations of both parties have used public service announcements to explain policy and make the case for the nation's direction." The official also said MAGA Inc. will pay for the PSA ads moving forward.
So are they political or not? If they were clearly not political, why does the super PAC that exists to elect and promote Trump now get to foot the bill? You can't hand the invoice to the political operation and keep insisting there's nothing political here.
The Question Nobody Will Answer
NBC News asked MAGA Inc. whether Trump and the super PAC would reimburse the government for the ads that have already aired. No immediate response. The White House didn't answer that question either.
"Moving forward" is carrying a lot of weight in that official's statement. It means the ads that already ran stay paid for by you. The $10 million is gone, the airtime is spent, and the only apology on offer is a Truth Social post complaining about the Radical Left.
If a contractor billed your company for work that benefited only the boss, then said "we'll pay for the next one," you'd call a lawyer. Possibly the cops.
The Dingo Take
A president who gets caught using public money to advertise himself and responds by promising to stop next time has not reformed anything. He has changed the billing address.
Notice what the reversal does and doesn't concede. Trump never says it was wrong. He says the Radical Left is upset and that nothing will make them happy. He is calling it standard practice and, in the same breath, abandoning the practice because of the heat. That is not a change of heart. That is a man pulling his hand out of the cookie jar and insisting he was just checking the temperature.
Here's what should keep you up. It took Thom Tillis, a retiring Republican with nothing left to lose, saying the quiet part out loud before anyone in power blinked. Imagine how this goes when nobody with a conscience and a microphone is available. The $10 million is already spent. The CBP money is already redirected. The only thing that stopped the next round was a bipartisan stink, and the White House still won't say whether you'll get a dime back. Watch the refund. If there isn't one, the lesson Washington takes away is that the first dip into the till is free.
Comments