Democratic Representatives Jamie Raskin of Maryland and George Whitesides of California have formally requested independent investigations into television advertisements promoting President Donald Trump, which are explicitly marked as "Paid for by the U.S. Government."
Raskin, the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, and Whitesides sent a letter to the Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, demanding a probe to determine whether federal laws were violated.
The ads have aired ahead of the midterm elections. Three spots ran over the past month, and a fourth began airing Wednesday. The latest ad focuses on Trump's Iran war policy and features quotes from Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
The White House video team is producing the ads, and Trump is directly involved in their creation. The White House has characterized the spots as "Public Service Announcements," a claim rejected by Democrats.
One ad includes imagery of Trump set to the song "Love Me" by JMSN, alongside audio of UFC President Dana White praising the president. Another spot features clips from Trump's visit to Mount Rushmore.
A third ad is nearly identical to one used in Trump's 2024 presidential campaign, criticizing the "deep state" and pledging to remove warmongers from government. The lawmakers contend this similarity demonstrates an illegal use of public funds.
Raskin's letter argued: "These ads constitute an illegal use of taxpayer funds, perhaps best demonstrated by the fact that they are virtually identical to the ones Donald Trump used during his 2024 presidential campaign, and in fact use the same footage and the same inept ideological messaging."
Democrats believe the ads violate the Hatch Act, the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026, the Anti-Deficiency Act, and federal criminal statutes. The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2026 specifically prohibits using federal money for government propaganda.
"The American people are apparently paying for Donald Trump to create desperate pre-election propaganda," the lawmakers wrote in their letter. "Both Congress and your agencies have a responsibility to immediately investigate this shameless theft of public funds and violation of multiple federal statutes, including the Hatch Act."
The GAO has been asked to examine the sources, accounts and total amount of taxpayer funds used to produce and distribute the ads across television markets and social media platforms, and to issue a legal decision on whether federal law was broken.
The Office of Special Counsel has been tasked with identifying which specific laws were violated by the ad campaign.
