The Trump administration has admitted its lawyers missed a federal court order banning taxpayer-funded ads praising the president because nobody checked their email.
U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rochon of the Southern District of New York granted a temporary restraining order on Sunday evening in a challenge led by Common Cause.
The case centres on a $20 million campaign ad blitz that redirected funds Congress allocated to the Department of Homeland Security for border security into national television spots praising President Trump.
The ads aired in the weeks before the midterm elections, raising serious legal questions about the misuse of appropriated public funds.
Judge Rochon, a Biden appointee, stayed DHS’s purchase order with its ad vendor LMD Agency, stayed the Office of Management and Budget’s $20 million apportionment, and barred the department from spending appropriated funds on the ads.
Her order, effective as of 6:45 p.m. Sunday, also required the government to cancel any slot, placement, reservation, or arrangement for the airing or dissemination of the challenged advertisements, including those scheduled for the evening of October 11, 2026.
The Department of Justice admitted that its lawyers “did not become aware of” the emailed order “until this morning,” apologising to plaintiffs and the court and assuring Judge Rochon that “the government is in compliance” with the TRO.
Despite that assurance, The Washington Post and Democracy Docket reported that two of the ads ran nearly 400 times after the restraining order took effect.
Plaintiffs, including Common Cause, Service Employees International Union Local 32BJ, Empire State 32BJ SEIU PAC, and Democratic Alabama state legislature candidate Robert Hunter, filed a notice with the court informing it of the violations.
Rather than immediately seeking contempt sanctions, the plaintiffs are asking Judge Rochon to convene a status conference to determine whether the Trump administration has now fully complied with her order.
DHS has since stated it is in compliance, confirming that LMD Agency has been informed it is enjoined, the purchase order is stayed, and the $20 million apportionment is on hold.
The temporary restraining order lasts 14 days unless extended, and Judge Rochon is in the process of rescheduling a conference that had been set for Tuesday.
In a parallel lawsuit brought by the Democratic National Committee in Washington D.C., the Justice Department’s Federal Programs Branch has attempted a merits defence of the ad campaign.
That defence largely rests on the argument that something only counts as impermissible propaganda if it is “completely devoid of any connection with official functions,” with a hearing set for Thursday morning.