Federal court orders US President's administration to halt publicly funded advertisements

A federal court in New York ordered the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump to halt the broadcast of television advertisements funded by taxpayer money, following a lawsuit accusing the administration of using public funds for political campaigning ahead of the U.S. congressional midterm elections scheduled for November.

The Associated Press reported on Sunday evening that U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rearden issued a 14-day temporary restraining order requiring the administration to cancel the remaining advertisements, noting that the Department of Homeland Security had allocated $20 million for the ad campaign.

The agency added that the watchdog group Common Cause was part of a coalition that filed the lawsuit, which deemed the ad campaign an illegal use of federal funds, while the White House defended it as “public service advertisements aimed at informing the public about the administration’s policies.”

The agency noted that the U.S. Department of Justice argued that the restraining order was unnecessary because the campaign was scheduled to end on Sunday.

The decision comes weeks before the U.S. congressional midterm elections on November 3, amid objections from plaintiffs regarding the use of government funds for political advertising.

According to the agency, the restraining order is a temporary measure and does not constitute a final ruling on the legality of the ad campaign.