‘What it was all about’: Ethics expert calls Trump’s ‘Salute to America’ a ‘taxpayer-funded campaign ad’

A prominent ethics expert blasted President Donald Trump on Friday after the president posted a highly-edited video clip of his "Salute to America" Independence Day speech.

Walter Shaub, who served as director of the United States Office of Government Ethics (USOGE) under President Barack Obama, took Trump to task.

"There you have it," Shaub said on Twitter, responding to Trump's video (below.) "A taxpayer- funded campaign ad. Your tax dollars coopted for the benefit of a man whose idea of public service is the public serving him. Tens of millions effectively given to the Trump Campaign. This is what it was all about. This and revenue for his hotel."

It's unknown how much Trump's ego-driven taxpayer-funded Independence Day Soviet-style campaign ad cost the American taxpayer, but the military parade Trump originally wanted was estimated out at $92 million. We do know that Trump took $2.5 million out of the National Park Service's budget, money tagged for making improvements to parks across the country, to help pay for his Independence Day self-gratification.

Minutes later, Shaub noticed the Trump's official re-election campaign retweeted the video – that your tax dollars paid for, and that has the official seal of the White House on it at the end:

Here's the one-minute video that Shaub says is clearly a campaign ad. Clearly the Trump campaign agrees: