GOP Leader Thune Says Taxpayers Shouldn’t Pay for Trump TV Ads

(Bloomberg) -- Senate Republican Leader John Thune said taxpayers shouldn't be footing the bill for video advertisements lauding President Donald Trump that the administration has called "presidential public service announcements."

One television advertisement airing on cable and broadcast networks praises Trump with a photo montage while another features outtakes from a Trump speech and a voiceover by the president saying that a US "golden age" has begun.

The ads aired on national television over the weekend, including on Sunday morning public affairs shows and several college and NFL football games.

"It's a great message, I like the message, but it shouldn't be paid for with taxpayer dollars," Thune told reporters at the Capitol on Monday.

Democrats and the watchdog group Public Citizen have called the government funding for the ads illegal. Such advertisements would typically be paid for by political committees separate from the government.

Thune's criticism is the latest public break by the Senate majority leader, who has until recently largely avoided public criticism of the president. Republicans face unusually strong competition to retain US Senate seats in typically stalwart GOP states such as Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Alaska and Texas.

The White House defended public funding for the video ads in a statement, saying that Trump "is not on the ballot" in the midterms and they are "a reminder for Americans to love their country."

Democrats counter that the ads violate language in this year's government spending law that prohibits the use of funds "for publicity or propaganda purposes within the United States not heretofore authorized by Congress." They also say it violates the Hatch Act, which prevents public servants from acting on behalf of political campaigns.

(Updates with additional details throughout.)