Top Judiciary Democrat demands investigation into Trump
This story raises questions about governance, accountability, and American values.
Jamie Raskin is at it again, and this time his target is taxpayer-funded ads. The House Judiciary's top Democrat, joined by Rep. George Whitesides, has asked the GAO and the Office of Special Counsel to investigate the Trump administration's advertising spending.
New Republican Times Editorial Board
House Judiciary ranking member Jamie Raskin (D-MD) sent a letter Wednesday to U.S. watchdog and investigative agencies requesting two investigations into the Trump administration advertisements paid for by taxpayer dollars.
Raskin, along with Rep. George Whitesides (D-CA), asked the Government Accountability Office, the government watchdog, and the Office of Special Counsel to launch investigations into three pro-Trump government-funded ads that recently began airing on TV.
Democrats lay out investigation priorities if they retake the House Raskin targets Kushner after Jeffries takes heat for meeting with Trump son-in-law Raskin targets Kushner after Jeffries takes heat for meeting with Trump son-in-law “President Trump is obviously desperate for the American people to ‘love’ him, a problem that goes beyond your jurisdiction,” the two members wrote. “But stealing taxpayer dollars to pay for Mr.
Trump’s narcissistic ego trips is plainly illegal. Your agencies have an important responsibility to hold accountable members of his Administration who violate the laws and policies under your purview.” The letter outlines four ways the ads allegedly violate federal statutes, including a law that prohibits the use of public money for government propaganda; the Hatch Act, which prohibits executive branch employees from engaging in “pernicious” political activities; and federal law prohibiting the use or conversion of public funds to which someone is not entitled.
The fourth alleged violation points to a law that bars the government from spending more money on an “expenditure or obligation” than the amount that has been appropriated by Congress. The White House released U.S. government-funded political ads, spending more than $1.5 million on them since last week, according to AdImpact.
The advertising campaign has drawn criticism from those on the Left and the Right, who chided the administration for using taxpayer dollars for ads that appear political in nature. “This is the sort of government propaganda one might expect in North Korea, not the United States of America, and it is an egregious and utterly illegal misuse of Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars,” Sens.
Patty Murray (D-WA) and Jack Reed (D-RI) and Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) and Steny Hoyer (D-MD) wrote in a letter to White House chief of staff Susie Wiles. Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) told CBS over the weekend that “no public official including President Trump or Kristi Noem or John Kennedy, should spend public money on private ads for themselves.” A White House spokesperson denied they were political ads, calling them instead “public service announcements” and adding they are “educational and unapologetically patriotic.” “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 spokesperson said.
DEMOCRATS TURN ON THE CASH SPIGOT FOR TALARICO, BUT IS IT ENOUGH? Raskin’s letter pushed back on the sentiment that the ads were public service announcements, saying “nearly every claim uttered in these ads is false,” pointing to one ad that claimed Trump revived American manufacturing.
The Washington Examiner reached out to the GAO, OSC, and the White House for comment.
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New Republican Times Editorial Board
Jamie Raskin is at it again, and this time his target is taxpayer-funded ads. The House Judiciary's top Democrat, joined by Rep. George Whitesides, has asked the GAO and the Office of Special Counsel to investigate the Trump administration's advertising spending. The ads, as far as anyone can tell, touted things like border security and economic wins. That's apparently a scandal now.
Here's the thing: every administration runs public awareness campaigns. Barack Obama did it. Joe Biden did it. The difference is that Trump's ads say things Raskin doesn't want Americans to believe. So instead of arguing with the message, he's demanding investigators comb through line items. This isn't oversight. It's oversight theater. The taxpayer money is paying for real information, not some sinister propaganda machine. If Raskin thinks the ads are false, he can sue or offer a rebuttal. He won't, because he knows they're true.
The bigger tell is the timing. Raskin is sending this letter while the administration is slashing waste and holding federal agencies accountable. That's what actually threatens the swamp. So we get another letter, another inquiry, another week of headlines designed to make people think something improper happened. The only corruption here is weaponizing watchdogs to chase headlines. We expect better from the GAO, which should dismiss this as the political stunt it is. Raskin's job is to find real wrongdoing, not invent it because he dislikes the White House's messaging.
Commentary written with AI assistance by the New Republican Times Editorial Board.