FCC Chair Brendan Carr said he sees no grounds for an agency review after taxpayer-funded TV ads featuring President Trump began airing. Democrats say the White House transferred $20 million from Homeland Security to run the spots, one of which resembles a 2024 campaign ad. Ethics experts and a Democratic FCC commissioner criticized the ads, and Public Citizen has filed a complaint claiming they amount to prohibited campaign material. Carr, appointed by Trump in January 2025, has defended broadcasters' airing of the spots as standard public service announcements.
FCC Chair Says Taxpayer-Funded Ads Featuring Trump Don’t Warrant Agency Review
FILE PHOTO: U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr listens to a reporter's question during a press conference, following an open meeting of the FCC, in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 22, 2026. REUTERS/Kylie Cooper/File Photo
WASHINGTON, Sept 30 - The chair of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission said on Wednesday that taxpayer-funded television spots featuring President Donald Trump are not improper and do not raise regulatory red flags.
Democratic lawmakers have said the White House moved $20 million from the Department of Homeland Security to finance the broadcasts, including one spot they say closely mirrors a 2024 Trump campaign commercial. The ads began airing about five weeks before the midterm elections and praise a "golden age of America."
"There's nothing in there that strikes me to merit any sort of FCC review or any liability for any broadcaster for running a regular, normal (public service announcement)," said FCC Chair Brendan Carr, a Republican who was appointed to lead the agency by Trump in January 2025.
Reactions and Criticism
Ethics experts and lawmakers from both parties have criticized the three nationally broadcast spots, arguing they may cross longstanding limits on government political activity and propaganda. FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, a Democrat, said the ads represent "an aggressive effort to influence the outcome of the midterm elections."
Legal Challenge
Public Citizen has filed a complaint with the FCC, contending the advertisements are effectively campaign material that should not be produced or distributed with taxpayer funds. Lawmakers have questioned whether public money is being used to promote the president politically.
What The Ads Show
One ad shows President Trump declaring "America will never be a communist country" while a chorus repeats the words "love me." Another juxtaposes images of Mount Rushmore with footage of Trump praising a "golden age of America." A third spot warns of a "final battle" against the "deep state" and closely resembles a television commercial used during Trump’s 2024 campaign. Each spot concludes with a disclaimer stating it was paid for by the U.S. government.
Debate is expected to continue over whether the spots violate legal or ethical prohibitions on using public resources for political messaging, even as the FCC chair says the broadcaster liability and agency-review thresholds are not met.
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