US President Donald Trump must cancel any remaining television ads paid for with millions in taxpayer money for political promotions, a federal court judge ruled on Sunday night, granting a temporary restraining order.
This comes after publicly funded television ads glorifying Trump began airing in late September, sparking bipartisan backlash.
The commercials feature Trump promoting his policies and warning against communism and of a "final battle" against "globalists."
They end with a disclaimer saying they were paid for by the US government.
What did the judge say?
New York District Judge Jennifer L Rochon called the commercials an illegal misuse of funds, siding with a coalition which includes the nonpartisan watchdog Common Cause.
"Defendants shall not enter into, renew, or expand any agreement authorizing the development, creation, dissemination, placement, or airing of the challenged advertisements" during the two-week duration of her order, the judge said.
The court ordered the halt even as the administration said the ad campaign was coming to an end. In a court filing late on Saturday, the Justice Department had argued that the temporary restraining order was unnecessary because "the alleged offending conduct will end tomorrow."
What is the controversy?
The Department of Homeland Security tapped $20 million (€17.8 million) taxpayer funds to run the ads in question.
Legal experts argue that it violates a federal statute against congressionally appropriated money being used for "publicity or propaganda," along with other laws potentially.
On Monday, Trump had said he considered the ads to be "rather standard" and a "positive promotion for our great USA," but that they would not be funded by taxpayers any longer.
The White House said last week that the president's political action committee would fund the ads going forward but not reimburse taxpayers for the ones that had already run on their dime.
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"There is no legal justification — and no precedent — for the president to use the machinery of the government and funds set aside by Congress for other uses to influence electoral outcomes that further his own agenda," the plaintiffs said in a statement issued by Democracy Forward, a nonprofit organization that represents them.
"We won't stop until this administration is held fully accountable, and no president from any party can waste and abuse taxpayer funds for propaganda ever again," said Common Cause President and CEO Virginia Kase Solomon.
The plaintiffs, which included a public employee union and a candidate for Alabama state representative, urged the judge to block the ads by Friday so they would not air during weekend programming, such as football games and Saturday Night Live.
US Democrats have also challeneged the ads in a seperate suit filed at a federal court in Washington.
Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko
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