The White House has launched a new taxpayer-funded television ad that features President Donald Trump walking down a hall while audio of him declaring “this is the final battle” plays for viewers. This latest spot aired during at least two NFL games on Sunday, showing up during Fox broadcasts of the Washington Commanders-Seattle Seahawks game and the Carolina Panthers-Cleveland Browns matchup, CNN reports.
The footage reportedly seems nearly identical to a video President Trump posted on Truth Social in January 2024. The version on Truth Social includes an extra six seconds that showcases his campaign logo and a text number, but the government-funded version swaps those out for the words Paid for by the US Government across the screen.
In the ad, President Trump says, “We will cast out the communists, Marxists, and fascists. We will throw off the sick political class that hates our country. We will rout the fake news media, and we will liberate America from these villains once and for all.” These lines echo comments he made during a Veterans Day speech in 2023.
This is actually the third government-funded ad identified by the media tracker AdImpact in just a few days
One of the previous ads featured rapidly edited pictures and video of President Trump over audio of him speaking out against communism and socialism, while text on the screen highlighted his administration’s accomplishments like reigniting American manufacturing. A second ad shows video of President Trump at Mount Rushmore where he says, “Never before has any nation celebrated so magnificent a triumph as this one.”
White House airs new taxpayer-funded TV ad featuring Trump “final battle” warning ahead of midterms.
— NewsWire (@NewsWire_US) September 27, 2026
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The White House has defended these spots, comparing them to past administrations that ran public service announcements about topics like Medicare, Obamacare, and Covid-19 vaccinations. A White House spokesperson stated that the commercials are very clearly not campaign ads. The spokesperson further explained that the ad is educational and unapologetically patriotic, adding that we should be proud of our country.
The situation has drawn plenty of scrutiny from various groups and lawmakers. Carol Evans, the vice president for policy at the government watchdog group Common Cause, said, “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.
The criticism has also been bipartisan. Sen. Andy Kim, a Democrat from New Jersey, went on X to ask, “how much taxpayer money did the government spend on this ad?” Meanwhile, Republican Sen. John Kennedy from Louisiana suggested that there should be rules prohibiting lawmakers from using public money to promote themselves. He also mentioned in an interview with CBS’ Face the Nation over the weekend, “I also think that we ought to have a rule that no politician can have a building named after him while he’s alive.”
GOP Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky also weighed in on social media. He called the ad ominous and wrote, “Don’t worry, using taxpayer dollars to run ominous campaign ads of the President has been done before and is completely legal… in banana republics.”
