German (DE) 
English (US) 
Spanish (ES) 
French (FR) 
Hindi (IN) 
Italian (IT) 
Russian (RU) With early voting about to begin in competitive midterm races, President Donald Trump has kept most of his super PAC money on the sidelines, causing Republican leaders to conclude it's too late to fully deploy the cash in the midterms and that he intends to hold on to much of it for his own purposes.
Trump's political advisers have been assuring anxious allies that MAGA Inc., the president's super PAC that had more than $400 million on hand as of July 31, will come to the rescue during the peak campaign season after Labor Day. But Republicans are increasingly skeptical and suspicious that Trump - who must personally approve the spending - has other ideas.
The president has not revealed his plans, and his political advisers consistently say they will not share them with reporters. Some people around Trump have concluded that he has little interest in spending the bulk of his super PAC funds on this year's midterm races, according to a person with knowledge of internal conversations.
Theories about what Trump wants to do with the money cover a broad range of possibilities, including protecting his political influence in the next presidential race by passing on the money to his chosen successor and saving up for legal fees, postpresidential travel, events and pet projects, such as his library. Trump's Miami library is projected to cost at least $1 billion, the most expensive presidential library construction to date.
The person with knowledge of internal discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk about those conversations, said Trump and his team believe their ability to rake in massive donations will take a hit after the midterm elections, giving the president an incentive to keep hold of the money he has raised so far.
Fundraising accounts associated with the president - such as his super PAC and funds for his inauguration, White House ballroom and Freedom 250 events - have been inundated with donations from companies looking to get in Trump's good graces, a dynamic that is likely to change as he becomes a lame duck.
Some donors have started holding back on giving more money to the super PAC while it sits on earlier contributions, according to people familiar with the matter who, like others interviewed for this article, spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters.
Trump's reticence surrounding how he will use MAGA Inc. money has caused particular worry for Republicans in this fall's elections.
GOP candidates and officials still avoid criticizing the president on the record. Privately, however, some operatives have complained that MAGA Inc. has already missed valuable opportunities to lock in airtime at lower advance rates and define candidates before attitudes harden.
Allies have also criticized Trump's preference for promoting his own record, arguing that super PACs are most effective at attacking opponents, as MAGA Inc. did in 2022.
The nonprofit arm of Trump's political operation, Securing American Greatness, premiered its first midterm ads on Wednesday, spending just under $1 million, according to the tracking firm AdImpact. The ads, set to air nationwide, feature video clips of Trump talking about tax breaks in his domestic spending legislation and lower prices for eggs and prescription drugs. One spot uses Trump's friend Dana White, the chief executive of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
"Like, they think he's popular or something," a Republican ad maker scoffed when shown the videos. "He's not."
Multiple public and private polls show Trump's approval rating mired in the mid-30s, at or near historic lows for a president facing a midterm election.
The ads adhere to Trump's instruction to advisers to promote his record, and the super PAC could take a different approach with future ad buys, people familiar with the discussions said.
A large lead in available cash has been one of the few bright spots for Republicans in this election cycle, because many of the swing constituencies that helped Trump win back the White House have drifted away amid disappointment with persistent inflation and the Iran war. Leaving a large portion of MAGA Inc.'s money on the sidelines threatens to neutralize that advantage, as individual Democratic campaigns outraise their GOP counterparts.
"I worry about that, for sure," Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-South Dakota) told his home state's CBS affiliate about the possibility of losing the Republican majority in the upper chamber. "I'm a realist, and I just think you - I don't ever try and sugarcoat things. I think it's a competitive environment right now."
While some Republicans have given up on waiting for the MAGA Inc. cavalry, Democrats continue to warn that they expect Trump's super PAC and Elon Musk's political outfit to outgun them.
"All of that takes the advantage that Democrats have in terms of individual small-dollar donors, and it really will just swamp it," said Rep. Chris Pappas (D-New Hampshire), who is running for an open Senate seat in a tight race against former Republican senator John E. Sununu.
"We are going to get outspent in this race," he said.
Musk's America PAC has started advertising in the battleground Senate races in Texas, Michigan, New Hampshire and Maine, according to Meta's disclosures of political ads on Facebook and Instagram. A spokesman declined to comment.
With the availability of broadcast airtime dwindling, MAGA Inc. may spend more heavily on ads placed on digital streaming services, according to three people familiar with the plans. Those people said streaming services can be more cost-effective for targeting younger and less frequent voters, like those who helped Trump in 2024, a constituency that Republicans will need to mobilize again this fall.
The PAC is also likely to pay for events and get-out-the-vote operations, one of the people said.
Skeptics of MAGA Inc.'s promises point to Trump's history of viewing money that he raised as his own and resisting using it to help others. So far this year, the super PAC has spent less than $900,000 supporting Sen. Darline Graham (R-South Carolina) in her primary and less than $20,000 sending text messages for Rep. Clay Fuller (R-Georgia), according to federal campaign finance disclosures.
"I'm not affected by the election," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday while discussing the Iran war. "I'm not running. But my party is running, and I'm going to help my party."
At an event in the Rose Garden with congressional Republicans, Trump on Wednesday night previewed what he described as nonstop travel in the last 30 days before the elections, including a trip to Alaska to stump for Sen. Dan Sullivan (R), but he made no mention of super PAC spending.
"We're going to be helping you, and I'll be going around and doing a lot of speeches," he said. "We're going to take that little, that final 30 days. You don't want to go too much before then because people forget."
Dan Merica contributed to this report.
Related Content
Comments