NEW YORK (AP) — The federal government must pull three taxpayer-funded Trump administration ads that appear to have been made for political or propaganda purposes, including one touting the president’s claim that every American will get $5,000 if Republicans keep control of Congress in the upcoming election, a judge ruled Friday.
U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Rochon in New York sided with a coalition, including the nonpartisan watchdog Common Cause, in ordering the government to take down the advertisements entitled “$5,000 to Americans,” “Every Democrat Voted Against No Tax on Tips,” and “Cost of Socialism." She declined to pull several other ads.
She said the three ads must be taken off official government websites, including social media sites such as YouTube, Instagram and the like. Rochon also ordered the cancellation of any plans for the airing or distribution of the ads through authorized third parties, including by President Donald Trump’s flagship super PAC, MAGA Inc.
Rochon was nominated to the court by then-President Joe Biden, a Democrat, and once served as a law clerk for Trump’s sister, the late Maryanne Trump Barry, a longtime federal appeals court judge.
Responding to the ruling, White House spokesperson Lauren Bis said: "This Biden-appointed activist judge issued a lawless order to stop the administration from sharing patriotic videos.”
Rochon ruled during a hearing in which she considered expanding a temporary restraining order she issued two weeks ago, when she banned a series of ads that glorify Trump and echo his political messaging going into the midterms.
The plaintiffs sought the removal of at least 13 ads, but Rochon only ordered that the three be pulled, at least for now. She noted that the Government Accountability Office has observed that there are instances when the president's office is entitled to inform the public of its policies, justify its policies and respond to attacks on its policies.
Rochon said the plaintiffs were seeking to restrict the office in ways that were “broad and far reaching” and she found herself concluding that the government will ultimately prevail legally with regard to many of the ads.
Late Friday, government lawyers asked Rochon to exclude MAGA Inc. from the ruling, arguing that the organization isn’t a party to the case and that government defendants have no control over its operations. The lawsuit challenging the ads didn’t include Trump as a defendant. Rochon had yet to rule on that.
The White House has defended the ads as public service announcements akin to what past administrations have made to promote various policies. But the recent ads differ from many past public service announcements because they don't try to help the public benefit from specific government programs, according to the plaintiffs.
After Rochon issued the order, she noted that she was doing so on a Friday afternoon and that the government would have no excuse to delay taking them down immediately.
A government lawyer acknowledged that he would be able to immediately notify relevant individuals responsible for taking down the ads.
“Everyone is here. Everyone can hear my order. No one is at the theater,” the judge quipped in a reference to excuses offered by government lawyers when her recent order, issued over a weekend, wasn't immediately obeyed.
Rochon said irreparable harm could result to the plaintiffs if she didn't ban the ads while the court case proceeds, though she noted that she could reverse herself and restore the ads or ban additional ads after hearing more evidence in the coming weeks.
“This court can neither postpone an election nor turn back the clock,” Rochon said after concluding that the plaintiffs were likely to succeed on their claims regarding the ads and would suffer harm if they were not taken down.
“This temporary restraining order will stop the administration’s wanton disregard for the law while the court hears the full case,” said Bradley Girard, a lawyer with Democracy Forward. “Congress has made clear that partisan ads cannot be funded with taxpayer dollars, and we are proud to work with this coalition to earn today’s result.”
In court papers, the coalition's lawyers wrote that Congress did not appropriate funds to the president's office “to run a PR shop to help the President’s allies and attack his perceived ideological opponents.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Oestericher wrote in response to the plaintiffs that there was nothing wrong with White House staff compiling advertisements to “inform the public about his policies and to rebut attacks on those policies and his Administration.”
Associated Press writer Michael R. Sisak contributed to this report.
President Donald Trump walks to board Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
President Donald Trump walks to board Marine One from the South Lawn of the White House, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
WASHINGTON (AP) — As early voting surges across the country, President Donald Trump reshuffled his weekend schedule to rally Republicans in two states with critical Senate races, underscoring his party’s push to drive turnout before Election Day.
Less than 24 hours after canceling planned weekend visits to Iowa and Kansas, the Republican president abruptly rescheduled back-to-back campaign rallies in those states on Sunday. Trump said he had received calls from “my friends” in the states who wanted the live events rather than tele-rallies. “They said, ‘If you can go, you would be better than a tele-rally,’” Trump said.
The last-minute reversal comes as Americans engage briskly in early voting. Nearly 10 million more Americans had cast ballots five days before Election Day than at the same point in 2022, according to an Associated Press analysis of voting data. The increases have been particularly pronounced in states with competitive Senate races — including Iowa and Kansas, where early voting is up roughly 30%.
Democrats and Republicans each hope that rise favors them as they fight for control of Congress in an election that has turned largely on affordability issues and the president's unpopularity. At the start of the month, Trump promised a marathon sprint of his signature rallies to shore up Republican candidates, and he has headlined 25 of them so far in October.
Trump has also signaled his administration would aggressively pursue an investigation into an alleged scheme to confuse voters in Alaska, another state with a competitive Senate race.
U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman in Alaska confirmed on Friday a probe — underway for months — into a candidate with the same name as the Republican incumbent. Heyman said law enforcement assets were surged to the state this week after The New York Times reported that Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting Dan J. Sullivan to run in the race alongside her Republican opponent, Sen. Dan Sullivan.
Peltola denied on Thursday that she knew anything about the work to add another candidate with her opponent’s name to the ballot. The Justice Department said it wants to isolate ballots ranking Dan J. Sullivan to test the level of “confusion” among voters.
Trump landed in Daytona Beach, Florida, on Friday night to rally supporters ahead of his renewed plans to return to Kansas and Iowa, home to battleground Senate races that will help determine whether Republicans hold onto their narrow majority in the chamber in the midterm elections.
Trump has already traveled to both states this month to boost Sen. Roger Marshall in Kansas and Republican Iowa Senate candidate Ashley Hinson, who currently serves in the House.
Trump told a Kansas City radio station Friday that Marshall is “fantastic” and credited the senator for pushing his administration on policies benefiting Kansas farmers, such as expanding tax-free use of red-dyed diesel.
Trump criticized Marshall's Democratic challenger, Methodist pastor Adam Hamilton, as a "radical” who has “caused turmoil with the church because he’s so liberal.” Hamilton has said that if Jesus were standing before them now, “Roger Marshall would call him ‘woke.’”
In Michigan, where Democrats had hoped to put a bruising Senate primary behind them after progressive Abdul El-Sayed narrowly defeated Rep. Haley Stevens in August, fighting between the rivals again dominated headlines.
Stevens reemerged in the final week before the general election, appearing on CNN to reaffirm that she would vote for El-Sayed while calling on him to repair relations with Jewish and Black voters. Her appearance came hours after her fiance said he would vote for El-Sayed’s Republican opponent, Mike Rogers.
Then on Friday, after agreeing to campaign alongside El-Sayed and Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina in Detroit on Sunday, Stevens released a lengthy statement on social media criticizing her former rival and demanding he condemn an advertisement linking U.S. support for Israel to rising grocery prices and address concerns about his past rhetoric.
“Abdul promises to get money out of politics,” Stevens wrote. “He can begin by getting Israel out of his explanation for everything Michigan cannot afford.”
El-Sayed has apologized for some of his past comments while attempting to unify Democrats. But in a statement Friday, El-Sayed touted his defeat of Stevens and said that while she “seems intent on relitigating a primary... let's all focus on the task at hand: beating Mike Rogers."
Early voting is significantly outpacing the last midterm election, with millions more Americans casting ballots in advance.
In Texas, where voters are deciding closely watched Senate, House and governor’s races, more than 6.3 million Texans had voted early as of Wednesday, compared with 4.2 million at the same point four years ago, a 50% increase.
Advance voting has also increased more than 30% from the same point four years ago in Maine, Michigan, North Carolina and Kansas, states with competitive Senate races. In South Carolina, where voters are choosing a successor to the late Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, early voting is up 83%.
Historic amounts of money have flowed into this year’s midterm elections. Republicans have expressed concerns about their voters not turning out in the midst of voter dissatisfaction with Trump and high costs, issues Democrats have focused on in their campaigns.
Associated Press writer Meg Kinnard in Washington and Jesse Bedayn in Austin contributed to this report. Follow the AP’s coverage of the 2026 midterm elections at https://apnews.com/hub/elections.
U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, right, shakes hands with a veteran during a campaign stop at Jethro's BBQ, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Ames, Iowa. (AP Photo/Ellen Schmidt)
Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed speaks during a campaign rally at the UAW Local 600 union hall, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Dearborn, Mich. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Democratic candidate U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff hugs a supporter during a campaign event on Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Decatur, Ga. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
FILE - Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers speaks alongside President Donald Trump during an event at the General Motors Proving Ground, July 27, 2026, in Milford, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
A woman holds a U.S. flag-themed fan during a campaign event for Republican U.S. Senate candidate Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Mark Felix)
President Donald Trump greets Iowa U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, at a campaign rally at Sioux Gateway Airport, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, in Sioux City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Sen. Roger Marshall, R-Kan., at a campaign rally at Heartland Credit Union Arena, Monday, Oct. 19, 2026, in Park City, Kan. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
President Donald Trump gestures after speaking at a campaign rally at Sioux Gateway Airport, Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026, in Sioux City, Iowa. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
President Donald Trump arrives at a campaign rally at the Shoemaker Center at Ohio University Chillicothe in Chillicothe, Ohio, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump attend a Halloween event on the South Lawn of the White House, Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
