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Trump's Propaganda Video May Have Violated the Law
Here's why what the White House staff—including Scavino, according to Trump—may well have been illegal.
Link to tweet
TRUMP’S PROPAGANDA VIDEO MAY HAVE VIOLATED THE LAW
By Walter Shaub
April 15, 2020
On Monday, President Trump’s regularly scheduled pandemic press conference took a bizarre and potentially unlawful turn. He used the press conference to show a captive audience of reporters in the room—as well as a television audience that spanned the globe—a video touting his role in what was characterized as a successful federal response to the coronavirus pandemic. The video may have violated a legal prohibition against using appropriated funds for the dissemination of unauthorized publicity or propaganda.
The video, which had the feel of a campaign ad, prompted stunned reactions on social media and among news outlets. It opened by falsely characterizing media outlets as having downplayed the pandemic “WHILE PRESIDENT TRUMP TOOK DECISIVE ACTION.” The capital letters in this statement appeared in the video. It also featured selected clips of President Trump and set them to dramatic music. Overlaid above various images was a timeline that omitted most of the month of February—the period when critics say President Trump failed to take needed action, chosing instead to visit his golf course and hold political rallies. The video closed with clips of state governors praising President Trump for his personal role in the pandemic response.
At one point, the video took an audio clip out of context to make it sound as though New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman had offered unqualified praise of his travel ban. Though Haberman was heard defending President Trump against accusations of xenophobia and racism in connection with his travel ban, the clip ended too soon. It crucially omitted her next statement: “The problem is, [the travel ban] was one of the last things that he did for several weeks.” Haberman also said, “He did not do anything after that in terms of alerting the public, or telling people to be safe, or telling people to take precautions. And it basically squandered several weeks within the US.”
The White House’s creation of this propaganda-style video may well violate federal appropriations law. The “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020” (Public Law 116-93) expressly prohibits the use of any federal appropriations—including those that pay White House salaries and expenses—for publicity or propaganda not authorized by Congress. Section 718 of the law reads: “No part of any appropriation contained in this or any other Act shall be used directly or indirectly, including by private contractor, for publicity or propaganda purposes within the United States not heretofore authorized by Congress.” This section applies generally to the entire government, including the White House Office.
{snip}
By Walter Shaub
April 15, 2020
On Monday, President Trump’s regularly scheduled pandemic press conference took a bizarre and potentially unlawful turn. He used the press conference to show a captive audience of reporters in the room—as well as a television audience that spanned the globe—a video touting his role in what was characterized as a successful federal response to the coronavirus pandemic. The video may have violated a legal prohibition against using appropriated funds for the dissemination of unauthorized publicity or propaganda.
The video, which had the feel of a campaign ad, prompted stunned reactions on social media and among news outlets. It opened by falsely characterizing media outlets as having downplayed the pandemic “WHILE PRESIDENT TRUMP TOOK DECISIVE ACTION.” The capital letters in this statement appeared in the video. It also featured selected clips of President Trump and set them to dramatic music. Overlaid above various images was a timeline that omitted most of the month of February—the period when critics say President Trump failed to take needed action, chosing instead to visit his golf course and hold political rallies. The video closed with clips of state governors praising President Trump for his personal role in the pandemic response.
At one point, the video took an audio clip out of context to make it sound as though New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman had offered unqualified praise of his travel ban. Though Haberman was heard defending President Trump against accusations of xenophobia and racism in connection with his travel ban, the clip ended too soon. It crucially omitted her next statement: “The problem is, [the travel ban] was one of the last things that he did for several weeks.” Haberman also said, “He did not do anything after that in terms of alerting the public, or telling people to be safe, or telling people to take precautions. And it basically squandered several weeks within the US.”
The White House’s creation of this propaganda-style video may well violate federal appropriations law. The “Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020” (Public Law 116-93) expressly prohibits the use of any federal appropriations—including those that pay White House salaries and expenses—for publicity or propaganda not authorized by Congress. Section 718 of the law reads: “No part of any appropriation contained in this or any other Act shall be used directly or indirectly, including by private contractor, for publicity or propaganda purposes within the United States not heretofore authorized by Congress.” This section applies generally to the entire government, including the White House Office.
{snip}
18 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
= new reply since forum marked as read
The title, I mean.
