A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to stop airing taxpayer-funded television ads featuring the president, stepping in hours before the government’s $20 million campaign was due to end. On Sunday, October 11, U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rochon ordered officials to cancel any remaining placements and barred new or expanded agreements for two weeks.
The Department of Homeland Security had set aside $20 million for the ads. A senior DHS official told the court that about $19 million had already gone to airtime through Sunday. The spots began running in late September; one reused an ad from Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. The White House has described the videos as public-service announcements promoting government policies.
Rochon issued a temporary restraining order after a coalition led by Common Cause sued. The plaintiffs also include a New York public employees’ union and an Alabama state legislative candidate. They argue the administration used federal money for political messaging in violation of limits on government-funded “publicity or propaganda.” The judge found the challengers had shown, at this early stage, that they were likely to succeed, could suffer irreparable harm without an order, and that the balance of equities and public interest favored relief.
The Justice Department argued the order was unnecessary because the ad campaign was scheduled to end Sunday. Rochon rejected that as a reason to dismiss the challenge, and her order prevents the defendants from renewing or expanding ad agreements while it remains in force. A hearing on next steps is scheduled for Tuesday, October 13.
The order is not a final ruling that the ads were unlawful. The administration has defended them as public information, while Trump said he would pay for ads going forward through a political fundraising account. The White House has not indicated plans to repay the public money already spent. The dispute now tests where government outreach ends and election-season political promotion begins.