The Trump administration launched a series of taxpayer-funded television advertisements featuring President Donald Trump in a black-and-white video describing a final battle against political opponents. The White House defends the spots as public service announcements, while critics and bipartisan lawmakers call them illegal campaign propaganda.
The latest advertisement, which aired during NFL broadcasts on Fox including the Washington Commanders-Seattle Seahawks and Carolina Panthers-Cleveland Browns games, shows President Trump walking down a hallway. In the audio, he vows to demolish the deep state
and expel the warmongers from our government
while promising to liberate America from these villains once and for all.
The 30-second spot is virtually identical to a video Trump posted to Truth Social in January 2024 during his third presidential campaign. The only significant changes are the removal of the 2024 campaign logo and a text-in number, replaced by a disclosure stating the ad was Paid for by the U.S. government.
The 2024 iteration of the ad from the Trump campaign urged viewers to Join President Trump’s Fight for America,
while the current version excludes the last few seconds of the original video, which ended with text reading Join President Trump’s fight to save America.
In the “final battle” ad, Trump’s voiceover—echoing comments he made during a Veterans Day speech in 2023—states, 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.
He further tells viewers, With you at my side, we will demolish the ‘deep state.’ We will expel the war mongers from our government. We will drive out the globalists.
AdImpact Spending and the PSA Campaign
This “final battle” spot is the third government-funded advertisement tracked recently by the media firm AdImpact. The administration’s broader blitz includes a minute-long ad featuring Mount Rushmore at night and a 30-second spot that began airing Wednesday, which pairs clips of Trump discussing the defeat of communism with text promoting reigniting American manufacturing and the largest tax cuts in history. This “Love Me” ad is set to the song “Love Me” by JMSN and features Trump describing how he wanted to defeat communism.
The “final battle” commercial starts with several black-and-white images of Trump and then shifts to clips of him at White House events and political rallies. It promises to defeat communism, socialism and Marxism
and boasts Trump’s largest tax cuts in history
while vowing to defend law and order and police.
The version of the video shared on Truth Social in 2024 also featured a message from UFC CEO Dana White, who praised Trump as the toughest, most resilient person
he has ever met.
The cost to taxpayers varies by specific spot according to tracking data. AdImpact estimates the administration has spent more than $1.7 million on these ads overall, though the “final battle” ad specifically has costs reported around $319,000. The higher figure reflects airings across NFL games on Sunday and during Fox News Sunday.
A spokesperson further claimed the ads are educational and unapologetically patriotic, designed to remind citizens why their country is worth defending.
Bipartisan Condemnation and Legal Scrutiny
The timing of the ads—appearing just over a month before the November midterms—has triggered a backlash from both sides of the aisle.
Republican lawmakers have also expressed discomfort. Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana told CBS that public officials should not spend public money on private ads for themselves. 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,
Kennedy said, mentioning former Homeland Security Secretary Noem, who faced criticism for spending $220 million on a border security advertising campaign.
Similarly, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky described the “final battle” ad as ominous, posting on social media: Don’t worry, using taxpayer dollars to run ominous campaign ads of the President has been done before and is completely legal… in banana republics.
Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, when asked about the “Love Me” ad, told reporters that the use of taxpayer money was reminiscent of the far-right former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, stating, It’s inappropriate.
I don't think you have to be a legal scholar and wonder why the president has to use taxpayer funds to promote his image
this close to an election.
Common Cause has suggested the spending may violate federal restrictions against using public funds for propaganda.
White House Defense and Precedents
The administration argues that because President Trump is not on the ballot and the ads contain no call to action, they cannot be classified as campaign materials. In a statement, the White House said its new commercials are very clearly not campaign ads.
The White House has drawn parallels between these ads and public service announcements from previous administrations regarding Obamacare, Medicare, and the promotion of Covid-19 vaccination. Specific examples cited include:
- A George W. Bush administration campaign regarding Medicare law.
- A 2014-2015 Environmental Protection Agency social media campaign under Barack Obama.
- The Joe Biden administration’s efforts to promote Covid-19 vaccinations.
However, critics argue these examples are fundamentally different because they promoted specific policies or public health initiatives rather than the image of the Oval Office occupant.
The dispute remains centered on the distinction between a public service announcement and a political advertisement. While the White House maintains the ads promote national pride, the use of a repurposed 2024 campaign video—complete with rhetoric about routing the fake news media and casting out communists, Marxists, and fascists—continues to fuel allegations of illegal campaign spending.
