[UPDATE] Senate Republican chair and administration confirm Trump TV ads are paid from $20 million in border-security money
Customs and Border Protection gave the whole $20 million to Maryland ad firm LMD Agency on Sunday, Sept. 20, one day after it moved into a 'commemorative events' account.
Three pro-Trump TV ads have run since Wednesday, Sept. 23. Senate Democrats say they are paid from Customs and Border Protection money in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (the 2025 Republican tax-and-spending law). Susan Collins (Sen-R Maine), who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee (the panel that writes federal spending bills), and an administration official confirmed the source. The spending. Ad tracker AdImpact estimates at least $1.7 million has bought airtime so far; Axios puts the same tracker at $2.5 million. The rest of the $20 million is committed but not yet spent. The ads. The spots have aired more than 2,000 times, 340 of them during Fox's NFL coverage. Axios reports Trump personally picks which ones run. "This is just the beginning," an administration official said. The song. Singer JMSN (Christian Berishaj), whose "Love Me" plays in the first ad, sent the White House a cease-and-desist letter on Monday, Sept. 28. He says he never licensed it. What next. Patty Murray (Sen-D Washington) and Chris Murphy (Sen-D Connecticut) gave Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin 48 hours to account for the money. JMSN's lawyers want written confirmation by Thursday, Oct. 1 that the song is off the air.
PREVIOUSLY
- Sept. 23 — The White House began airing taxpayer-funded TV ads starring Trump, one a word-for-word rerun of his 2024 campaign ad.
- Sept. 25–27 — Three ads, about $1.5 million in airtime, ran during NFL and college football games; the rerun alone hit about $319,000.
- Sept. 28 — Senate Majority Leader John Thune (Sen-R South Dakota) said he liked the message but it "shouldn't be paid for with taxpayer dollars."
The three ways GAO says agency ads break the propaganda ban:
- Covert propaganda: the "Paid for by the U.S. Government" tag on each spot likely rules this out
- Self-aggrandizement: one spot reruns Trump's 2024 campaign ad with only the sponsor line changed
- Purely partisan: the White House defense that Trump isn't on the ballot is not part of the test
RELATED
Public Citizen asks FCC, FTC, GAO and Special Counsel to make broadcasters stop airing the ads
The equal-time rule can't force stations to act, because Trump isn't a candidate. So the complaints argue the broadcasters themselves are liable.