After Bipartisan Backlash, Trump Says Super PAC Will Pay for Taxpayer-Funded Ads

President Trump said Monday that his political operation, not taxpayers, will pay for the television ads promoting him and his administration that began airing in late September, reversing course after criticism from lawmakers in both parties.

In a post on Truth Social, Mr. Trump said the ads were a positive promotion for the country and that paying for them with government money was a rather standard thing to do. Even so, he wrote, he had decided to pay for the ads himself and with money raised for MAGA Inc., the super PAC that supports him. A White House official said MAGA Inc. would pay for the spots going forward.

The administration did not say whether the government would be reimbursed for ads that have already run. Asked by NBC News, neither the White House nor the super PAC answered. Estimates of the spending vary: the ad-tracking firm AdImpact put it at at least $1.4 million by the end of September, the Associated Press reported, and NBC News, citing AdImpact, has since reported at least $10 million. Records show the Department of Homeland Security awarded a Maryland firm, LMD Agency, a $20 million contract for a “national media campaign” beginning Sept. 20, and CBS News reported that the money traced to a grant for Customs and Border Protection.

The ads carry an on-screen disclaimer stating that the federal government paid for them. One features Mr. Trump vowing to defeat communism, socialism and Marxism in America, another draws on his Fourth of July speech at Mount Rushmore, and a third is nearly identical to a 2024 Trump campaign ad.

The White House has defended the spots as public service announcements. An official told NBC News that administrations of both parties have used such messages to explain policy and make the case for the country’s direction, and earlier said the ads were clearly not political; CBS News reported the White House’s reasoning that the president is not on the ballot and the ads contain no call to vote.

Critics in both parties disagreed. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer called the ads propaganda. Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina compared Mr. Trump to Hungary’s former prime minister, Viktor Orbán, and Republican Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana said no public official should spend public money on private ads for themselves. Representatives Jamie Raskin and George Whitesides, both Democrats, asked the Government Accountability Office and the Office of Special Counsel to investigate whether the spending violated federal laws barring the use of appropriated funds for publicity or propaganda and limiting partisan activity by federal employees.

The White House has not said how anyone could verify that future ads are paid for with political money, the Associated Press reported. Senator Adam Schiff of California called on the White House to prove that taxpayer money is no longer being used and to repay what was spent, according to the Guardian.

MAGA Inc. had more than $400 million on hand at the end of July, the Guardian reported, and many Republican candidates have hoped that money would be spent in competitive races ahead of the Nov. 3 midterms.