Musician JMSN demands White House stop using his song in taxpayer-funded ads

White House defends ads as ‘public service announcements’; Democrats label them propaganda

JMSN, represented by Democracy Defenders Action and Ballard Spahr LLP, told Wiles in the cease-and-desist letter that he owns the copyright in both the musical composition of “Love Me” and its sound recording. The letter states the works “may not be used for any purpose without his prior consent” and that “you neither requested nor received such permission.” The attorneys added that the ad’s use of the song “raises legal questions over taxpayer funds being used for campaign-style advertising.”

Attorneys for the musician wrote that the portion of the song excerpted for the advertisement was “the heart of the copyrighted works” and that the government’s use of it “will have a negative effect on JMSN’s ability to license the song, and others, in the future.” The letter adds, “To be absolutely clear, JMSN does not want to be viewed as directly or indirectly affiliated with the president or his administration.”

The advertisement at issue, “The Country He Loves,” features Trump’s voiceover declaring that the United States will never be a communist country, with images of the president on screen as JMSN’s song plays. As of early Wednesday, a 15-second version of the ad remained posted on the White House’s YouTube account.

The cease-and-desist comes after Sens. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Reps. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) wrote to the White House last week demanding the ad be taken off the air. The four lawmakers compared the spot to “propaganda one might expect from North Korea” and called it “an egregious and illegal misuse of Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars.”

“The law is not complicated,” the lawmakers wrote. “You cannot use taxpayer dollars for political advertisements.”

The White House rejected that criticism in a Friday statement, describing the advertisements as “public service announcements.” “The announcements are very clearly not campaign ads; President Trump is not on the ballot and there is no call to action,” the statement said. “The announcements are a reminder for Americans to love their country and know why it’s worth defending — at home, at the border and abroad. That’s not partisanship — that’s a government that still believes in the country it serves.”

The White House’s statement did not address Trump’s recent public comments in which he has repeatedly told Republicans to vote as if he were on the November ballot.

The Trump administration began airing the taxpayer-funded ads last week. JMSN’s attorneys have set a 5 p.m. EDT Thursday deadline for the White House to confirm it has stopped using the song.