WaPo (“Trump ad airing with government funding despite law against ‘propaganda’“):

A television ad promoting President Donald Trump began airing on cable Wednesday saying it was paid for by the U.S. government, despite a federal prohibition on using taxpayer dollars for “publicity or propaganda.”

The ad is similar to spots released earlier by the nonprofit arm of Trump’s political operation to promote his record in the midterms campaign. But this one includes a tag reading, “Paid for by the U.S. Government.”

Since the 1950s, annual appropriations legislation — including the funding bill Trump signed in February — has routinely included a ban on using federal funds for “publicity or propaganda purposes.” The Government Accountability Office has said the prohibition applies to communications that are “purely partisan” and “designed to aid a political party or candidates.”

The ad consists of a supercut of Trump photos and videos interspersed with text of campaign slogans. The soundtrack features snippets of Trump speeches and a chorus of women singing, “I’ll make them love me.” It ends with Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana White praising Trump over footage of the June match on the White House lawn and military flyovers.

It has aired so far on Newsmax in Chicago and Fox News in Los Angeles, according to ad-tracking firm AdImpact. The firm noted, however, that it could not verify spending data for the ad because the networks airing it were not classifying it as political.

A White House official, speaking on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, argued that the ads are not political and that Trump is not on the ballot.

The president has repeatedly told his supporters to vote as if he were.

In an unsigned statement, the White House said: “These public service announcements are about reminding Americans to love their country and understand what makes it worth defending, at home, at our borders, and abroad.”

“The ad is educational and unapologetically patriotic. We should be proud of our country,” the statement said.

I can’t find an embeddable version of the full ad. Here’s a shorter version from the White House YouTube channel:

Whether this is political depends on the extent “loving the country” and “loving President Donald J. Trump” are synonymous.

Rep. Jamie Raskin (Maryland), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said on social media that the ad could amount to “felony criminal theft and conversion of government property for political campaign purposes.” He also cited the Hatch Act, which prohibits government employees from using their positions or official resources for political activities.

Come to think of it, I do remember training along those lines.

There is no immediate precedent for a government-sponsored political ad during a campaign.

In 2004, the administration of President George W. Bush was criticized for releasing ready-to-air video segments showing Bush signing a Medicare prescription drug law, complete with hired contractors posing as reporters. The GAO said the materials violated the propaganda prohibition.

So, really, everyone does it.

AP (“US government foots bill for television advertisement featuring Trump’s midterm messaging“) adds:

At first glance, it looks like a typical Republican campaign advertisement. As images of President Donald Trump flash across the screen, the 30-second spot says “America will never be a communist country” and boasts about the “largest tax cuts in history.”

But there’s something different near the end — a bit of text at the bottom that says “paid for by the U.S. government.”

According to AdImpact, which tracks media spending, the advertisement cost $14,000 and it ran during conservative shows on Fox News and Newsmax.

[…]

The White House did not say what agency paid for the spot, which includes background music with singers crooning “love me” over and over.

The advertisement does not say who voters should support in the midterms, but it meshes with campaign messaging from Trump and other Republicans, particularly during the party’s unusual convention in Dallas earlier this month.

It’s not just Raskin speaking out.

Republicans also criticized the ad.

North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, who is not running for reelection, referenced the former right-wing Hungarian prime minister to critique the advertisement.

“It’s inappropriate. It’s not like they need a GoFundMe page to have the dollars to do that sort of ad and they could do it. But using taxpayer dollars, it feels like Viktor Orban,” he said.

Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy said he hadn’t seen the ad but questioned whether it was legal.

“I don’t generally like to see politicians use public money to pay for their own campaign ads,” he said.

CNN (“‘Love Me’: White House airs government-funded ad praising Trump“) adds:

JMSN, the singer-songwriter whose song is the soundtrack of the ad, suggested on X that the administration used “Love Me” without his permission.

“I am looking at lawyers and handling this internally,” JMSN wrote.

[…]

The ad drew scrutiny from some Democrats in Congress and the government watchdog group Common Cause, which suggested it could violate rules against using taxpayer dollars for “propaganda.”

“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, Carol Evans, the vice president for policy at Common Cause, told CNN.

I predict there will be zero consequence for this. And, of course, a $14,000 ad that essentially nobody saw is now getting millions of dollars worth of free airtime.

Regardless, we can all agree that Communism is bad.