NEW YORK (AFP) - Republican front runner Donald Trump on Monday (Jan 4) unveiled his first TV ad of the 2016 US election campaign, reiterating his call for a ban on Muslims entering the United States.
The 30-second ad will broadcast in Iowa and New Hampshire from Tuesday ahead of the first primaries, costing US$2 million (S$2.9 million) a week, his campaign said.
"The politicians can pretend its something else but Donald Trump calls it radical Islamic terrorism, that's why he's calling for a temporary shut down of Muslims entering the United States," says the voice over on the ad.
The commercial opens with footage of the billionaire candidate addressing a rally before segueing into an image of President Barack Obama and Democratic front runner Hillary Clinton, then mugshots of the couple responsible for the San Bernardino killings last month.
"He'll quickly cut the head of ISIS and take their oil," added the male voice over, referring to the so-called Islamic State extremist group based in Iraq and Syria that allegedly inspired the couple.
"And he'll stop illegal immigration by building a wall on our southern border that Mexico will pay for," the commercial added.
Iowa votes first in the nation in the nomination race, on Feb 1, followed by New Hampshire eight days later.
"I am very proud of this ad, I don't know if I need it, but I don't want to take any chances," Mr Trump said on Monday.
The real estate tycoon, who is funding his own campaign, has boasted of spending no money on political television ads.
He has led the polls for months, using his bombastic and provocative style to dominate the media spotlight, without spending any of the US$35 million he said he had expected to use on ads by Jan 1.
He claims to have spent the least money of all the candidates on the campaign trail and of still achieving "the best results", saying "this is the kind of thinking the country needs". He has previously run radio ads and will launch a new radio ad this week featuring Ms Kathryn Gates-Skipper, the first female Marine to serve in combat operations, his campaign said.
Later on Monday, he is scheduled to address a political rally in Lowell, Massachusetts followed by another in Claremont, New Hampshire on Tuesday.
