US President Donald Trump’s campaign have spent $1.5 million to air TV advertisements that promote his “successful” first 100 days in office.
Paid for by Donald J.Trump for President, Inc., the ads will run on major networks across the US. They would also be shown to specific voting groups online.
The sponsor announced the ads buy on Monday and said in a statement that one ad, entitled “First 100 Days” shows Trump's first weeks in office and the successes he achieved through “exhibiting clear vision, resolute leadership, and an uncompromising dedication to the American people, just as he promised throughout the campaign.”
The campaign is also aimed at “fighting back against the continued media bias” read the statement, referring to Trump’s constant attacks against the mainstream news outlets that he claims are tarnishing his image.
The new Republican president repeated the accusations during a rally celebrating his 100th day, lashing out at critics and an "incompetent, dishonest" media for giving his tenure poor marks.
"In just 14 weeks, my administration has brought profound change to Washington," Trump told a cheering crowd at the Pennsylvania rally.
Trump said the news media were delivering “fake news” and said if their job was to tell the truth, then they deserved “a big, fat failing grade” with their current performance. “They are a disgrace,” he charged.
In February, Trump stepped up his rebuke of the media by calling a number of news organizations the “enemy of the American people.”
"The FAKE NEWS media (failing New York Times, NBC News, ABC News, CBS and CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!" he wrote on Twitter.
The Trump White House pushed the envelope even further in late February by blocking a number of major media outlets from a press briefing.
CNN, The New York Times, Politico, the Los Angeles Times, The Hill, the Daily Mail and BuzzFeed News were left out from Friday’s off-camera briefing, which was hosted by White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer.
Spicer defended the move and vowed that the White House would "aggressively push back" against "false stories."