Trump says he will stop using US taxpayer funds for ads

President Donald Trump has said he will stop using US taxpayer funds to pay for television ads he has fronted, following bipartisan pushback.

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

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 also vows to take action against the "deep state" and others he perceives as enemies.

The ads come just ahead of the pivotal November midterm elections, 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. 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.

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 people to get Covid-19 vaccines.

"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 told the BBC.

"It is the sense of the Senate that the advertisements promoting President Donald Trump that aired in September 2026, which included the direct language 'paid for by the U.S. Government,' should not be paid for by the United States government," the measure reads.

Republican Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters on Monday that while "I like the message ... it shouldn't be paid for with taxpayer dollars".

"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 said.

0:43Staff find copy of Bayeux Tapestry in school attic. 00:00:43, play videoStaff find copy of Bayeux Tapestry in school attic

0:36Jeremy Clarkson: Farming this year was 'an absolute disaster' 00:00:36, play videoJeremy Clarkson: Farming this year was 'an absolute disaster'

0:49How would young Tories vote if the Conservative Party didn't exist? 00:00:49, play videoHow would young Tories vote if the Conservative Party didn't exist?