Federal judge orders taxpayer-funded pro-Trump TV ads off the air
A federal judge in Manhattan on Sunday ordered the Trump administration to immediately stop airing government-funded TV ads that portray President Donald Trump favorably. The order bars using Department of Homeland Security funds to make or place the challenged ads.
The order: U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rochon of the Southern District of New York ordered the administration on Sunday to stop airing the ads, effective immediately, NBC News and POLITICO reported. She directed it to “cancel or cause to be cancelled” any of the ads still airing or being distributed, including spots set to run Sunday night, NBC News reported.
Money limits: The order bars the administration from using Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriated funds to develop, create, disseminate, place, distribute, publish or air the challenged ads, according to NBC News. Common Cause described the ruling as a temporary restraining order.
Who sued: The case was brought by the government watchdog group Common Cause; Robert Hunter, a Democratic candidate for the Alabama state House; and a New York labor union and its political action committee (PAC), NBC News reported. Similar lawsuits have been filed by others, including the Democratic National Committee (DNC).
The mootness fight: In a Saturday filing, the administration said DHS, through a vendor, had placed ad buys running through Sunday and had told the vendor not to buy time beyond that day, NBC News reported. Rochon rejected the argument that the case was moot because of that, according to NBC News.
What each side says: The plaintiffs argued there is no legal justification for using government machinery and taxpayer money for electoral propaganda, NBC News reported. Common Cause CEO Virginia Kase Solomón said in the group’s statement that the fight for accountability continues. The ads drew scrutiny for being nearly identical to a 2024 Trump campaign ad, and critics called them propaganda, NBC News reported. The White House, DHS, the Office of Management and Budget and the pro-Trump super PAC MAGA Inc. did not immediately comment, per NBC News.
What it means: A temporary restraining order is a short-term court order meant to hold things in place while a case moves forward. It is not a final ruling on the merits of the lawsuit.