Two ads aired into early Monday after Judge Jennifer Rochon’s 6:45 p.m. Sunday deadline, AdImpact advertising data shows. The Manhattan federal judge temporarily blocked the ads and related public payments for 14 days. She found that Homeland Security likely violated federal law by using border security funds for the campaign, which fell outside Congress’s authorized purposes and likely breached restrictions on partisan propaganda.
The campaign had already cost at least $19 million in airtime and was financed through a $20 million contract using Customs and Border Protection funds. Trump pledged Oct. 5 to pay for future ads with personal funds and money raised for his super PAC, MAGA Inc., after criticism from both parties. The White House said he would not reimburse the government for money already spent.