Trump’s first major midterm money move: A $10M Texas Senate ad blitz

Trump’s first major midterm money move: A $10M Texas Senate ad blitz 1 of 2 | President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House, Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) 2 of 2 | At left, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton speaks in McKinney, Texas, May 19, 2026, and at right, Texas state Rep. James Talarico, after voting, in Austin, Texas, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/LM Otero and Eric Gay,File) By JOSH BOAK Updated 9:49 PM MESZ, September 5, 2026 Leer en español Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook Copy Link copied Print Email X LinkedIn Bluesky Flipboard Pinterest Reddit BRIDGEWATER, N.J. (AP) — The political group associated with President Donald Trump is spending $10 million on television and digital s in the Texas Senate race, according to a Saturday filing with the Federal Election Commission. This is the first significant spending in a premier general election contest by MAGA, Inc., and reflects how a once-safe Republican seat in Texas may be viable for Democrats with the candidacy of James Talarico, a 37-year-old state representative. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is the Republican nominee in the race. Trump’s endorsement helped Paxton to defeat the incumbent, Sen. John Cornyn, in a May primary runoff election. Public disapproval of Trump over the economy and the Iran war has been a headwind for many Republican candidates. Voters generally go against the party in control of the White House in midterm elections and Democrats are hoping to gain control of the House and Senate — with Texas being a symbolically powerful indication of how the political map might be expanding this year. The ads seek to highlight taxes as a dominant issue at a time when many voters have expressed concerns about continued inflation. Talarico has favored higher taxes on wealthier households and the two ads seek to portray him as seeking tax hikes more broadly while claiming that Paxton would give tax breaks to first-time homebuyers and families with children. The key piece of legislation signed into law by Trump last year enhanced and extended many of his expiring tax breaks from his 2017 overhaul. But that measure also increased budget deficits, which has contributed to higher interest rates on the national debt. Trump has also hiked tariffs, which are taxes on imports, to try to raise revenue. With elections nearing, battleground Republicans still waiting for Trump to open his campaign wallet 5 MIN READ 266 Talarico wants to unearth Paxton’s depositions to keep focus on opponent’s past in Texas Senate race 5 MIN READ 912 Macho, macho men? Democrats talk masculinity on campaign trail after years of Trump’s bravado 5 MIN READ 912 “High Tax Talarico wants to take money out of Texans’ pockets. MAGA Inc. is going to ensure Texas knows about Talarico’s radical policies and elects Ken Paxton to the U.S. Senate,” Alex Pfeiffer, a spokesman for MAGA, Inc., said in a statement Saturday. Talarico campaign spokesperson JT Ennis pushed back against the ads’ claims that the Democrat seeks broad tax hikes. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google and Terms of Service apply. “Billionaire-backed dark money groups are lying about James Talarico because they’re scared of the people-powered movement we’re building to fix this broken, corrupt political system,” Ennis said in a statement. “James was proud to vote for the largest property tax cut in Texas history and has consistently voted to cut taxes for working Texans.” MAGA, Inc., has at least $400 million in campaign funds that GOP candidates have been waiting for the president to deploy. “I’m going to spend whatever amount of money necessary to try and help us,” Trump told reporters on Friday. The president stressed that these were his funds to spend as he sees fit. “This is my money,” Trump said, adding that it was “separate” from funds controlled by the Republican National Committee. The president also said he could hold some of the funds until the 2028 elections “if that’s what I want.” Trump is constitutionally barred from running for a third presidential term. Trump backed Paxton despite the Texas politician’s public scandals, but he has acknowledged this past week that 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 at a White House event on the midterm elections. Republicans in battleground states have been clamoring for the president to open his wallet and spend some of the enormous war chest he has amassed. James Blair, who runs the president’s midterm political operation, had tried to tamp down growing concern and impatience earlier this week. “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. AP national political reporter Jill Colvin contributed to this report. JOSH BOAK Boak covers the White House and economic policy for The Associated Press. He joined the AP in 2013. twitter mailto