Trump says he will stop using taxpayer funds for ads after bipartisan pushback

6 October 2026, 02: 44 BST. Updated 3 hours ago.

Key points

• It is the sense of the Senate that the promoting President Donald Trump that aired in September 2026.
• Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune remarked to journalists on Monday that while I like the message.
• Senator John Kennedy, a Republican, remarked on CBS News on Sunday that politicians should not spend taxpayer funds on promotional ads.
• "I don't think any public official, including President Trump or Kristi Noem or John Kennedy, should spend public money on private ads for themselves, " the Louisiana lawmaker remarked.
• Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire introduced a measure.

After bipartisan pushback, president Donald Trump has remarked he will stop using US taxpayer funds to pay for television ads he has fronted.

"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, " he remarked Monday on social media.

Trump remarked it is "a rather standard thing to do" but that he has decided to pay for the "Patriotic Ads" himself and with capital he raised through his MAGA Inc super political action committee.

For context, the ads, which praise the president and his policies, drew criticism and questions over their legality due to laws against using administration capital for political ads. Are Trump's US administration funded ads illegal?

There have been more than a dozen ads over recent weeks, with some mentioning Trump's tax cuts, US manufacturing and law and order. In them, Trump additionally vows to take action against the "deep state" and others he perceives as enemies.

In one ad, Trump notes, "We will cast out the communists, Marxists, and fascists. We will throw off the sick political class that hates our country. We will rout the fake news media, and we will liberate America from these villains once and for all".

When Democrats hope to take control of one or both chambers of the US Congress as polls continue to show Trump's approval rating falling, the ads come just ahead of the pivotal November midterm elections. Midterm elections often serve as a verdict on how a president is doing – and typically the party of a sitting president tends to lose seats in Congress.

For context, the White House has pushed back against criticism, calling the ads "educational" and saying they are not propaganda, but rather public service announcements.

They've pointed to previous administrations ads, like those under former Presidents Barack Obama on his healthcare plan and one under former President Joe Biden urging individuals to secure Covid-19 vaccines.

But legal experts say past US administration adverts have typically been concerning public health or national emergencies.

"It's difficult to see what legitimate government purpose is served by spending taxpayer dollars on ads whose only apparent purpose is to promote the president, " legal ethics expert Margaret Dylus-Yukins has informed the BBC.

Democratic Senator Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire introduced a measure. It was blocked by a Republican, denouncing the administration for using administration funds for for the ads.

"It is the sense of the Senate that the promoting President Donald Trump that aired in September 2026. It included the direct language 'paid for by the U.S. Administration, ' should not be paid for by the United States administration, " the measure reads. The ads have received criticism on both sides of the aisle.

Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune remarked to journalists on Monday that while "I like the message. It shouldn't be paid for with taxpayer dollars".

For now, trump says he will stop using taxpayer funds for ads after bipartisan remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.