Trump's MAGA Inc. Drops $10M on Texas Senate Race in First Major Midterm Move
MAGA Inc., Trump's political group, is spending $10 million on ads in the Texas Senate race, its first major foray into a general election contest.
President Donald Trump's political action committee, MAGA Inc., has committed $10 million to television and digital advertising in the Texas Senate race, according to a filing with the Federal Election Commission on Saturday. This marks the group's first significant expenditure in a premier general-election contest.
The move signals that the once-safe Republican seat is now seen as potentially competitive, with Democrats rallying behind state Representative James Talarico, a 37-year-old. The Republican nominee is Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who defeated incumbent Senator John Cornyn in a May primary runoff with Trump's endorsement.
The ad blitz comes as Republican candidates face headwinds from public disapproval of the president's handling of the economy and the Iran war. Midterm elections typically favor the party out of power, and Democrats are hoping to flip both chambers of Congress. A competitive race in Texas would be a symbolic victory, suggesting an expanded political map.
MAGA Inc. holds at least $400 million in campaign funds, and GOP candidates have been waiting for the president to deploy these resources. "I'm going to spend whatever amount of money necessary to try and help us," Trump told reporters on Friday, emphasizing the funds were his own and separate from Republican National Committee money. He also suggested he might hold some back for the 2028 elections.
Trump backed Paxton despite the attorney general's public scandals, though he has conceded Paxton is not the most telegenic candidate. "It's so insulting to him, but I might as well say it: You might not like the way he looks, you might not love his look, you might not love his television interviews, but he was the best attorney general in the country, perhaps," Trump said Wednesday.
James Blair, who runs the president's midterm political operation, has tried to ease concerns about the slow deployment of funds. "When it's all said and done, all Republicans, at least, will be quite pleased and relieved at the support they find," he said at an Ohio energy summit. A spokesperson for MAGA Inc. did not immediately comment on the ad buy.