Misleading: The President's new TV ads are just routine public service announcements, like every president runs.

“The President's new TV ads are just routine public service announcements, like every president runs.”

The facts: Presidents have run public service announcements before, but ethics experts, including a former White House ethics lawyer for President George W. Bush, say these spots are more political than past administrations' ads. They began airing Sept. 23, weeks before the election, paid for with at least 2.5 million dollars in public money. No ruling has settled whether they break the federal ban on publicity or propaganda spending.