Unethical, Illegal, and Unacceptable Misuse of Public Funds
by Winston Wendell
The Trump administration has crossed another bridge on its way to complete disaster by publicly displaying a campaign ad that utilizes taxpayer funds. The video, taken from Trump’s 2024 campaign, includes his usual insults at “villains” and “institutions.” This is not only shameful but illegal and ethically wrong.
According to the Hatch Act, federal employees cannot engage in any politics while on duty and misusing federal resources. Additionally, the Anti-Lobbying Act and appropriations acts state that it is illegal to use federal funds for “publicity or propaganda” for a candidate. In other words, Trump has officially been purchasing attack ads with taxpayer’s money.
This is an utterly unethical and completely corrupt practice, fueled by Trump’s vindictiveness and thirst for attention. The money paid by citizens for defense, roads, or public healthcare gets wasted on ad campaigns for political purposes. This public relations operation will damage the reputation of the government and the office of the president.
Such an unethical and corrupt action demonstrates Trump’s contempt for the rule of law and democratic norms in general. According to CREW, this latest scandal further illustrates the harm that can be done when the government engages in the kind of behavior. The Government Accountability Office already warned about the illegality of these actions. The President of the United States is not an executive for a private company. They should not turn their apparatus into a propaganda machine for their own electoral gain.
