Political groups linked to President Donald Trump are spending $10 million on television and digital ads in the Texas Senate race, according to documents filed Saturday with the Federal Election Commission.
This is the first time MAGA has spent heavily in a general election, and reflects how a once-safe Republican seat in Texas is becoming more viable for Democrats with the candidacy of 37-year-old state Rep. James Talarico.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is a candidate in the Republican race. With Trump’s support, Paxton defeated incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the May primary runoff.
Public disapproval of President Trump over the economy and the war with Iran is a headwind for many Republican candidates. Voters typically oppose which party controls the White House in midterm elections, with Democrats hoping to gain control of the House and Senate. Texas is a strong symbolic indicator of how the political map will expand this year.
The ad seeks to highlight taxes as a key issue at a time when many voters have expressed concern about continued inflation. Mr. Talarico supports raising taxes on wealthy households, and the two ads attempt to portray Mr. Paxton as calling for broader tax increases, while claiming that Mr. Paxton will give tax breaks to first-time homebuyers and families with children.
Significant legislation signed by President Trump last year strengthened and extended many of the tax breaks that expired in a 2017 review. However, this measure also increased the fiscal deficit and contributed to the rise in interest rates on government bonds. President Trump also increased tariffs on imported goods to raise revenue.
“High-Tax Talarico is trying to take money out of Texans’ pockets. MAGA will educate the state of Texas about Talarico’s radical policies and elect Ken Paxton to the U.S. Senate,” MAGA spokesperson Alex Pfeiffer said in a statement Saturday.
JT Ennis, a spokesperson for the Talarico campaign, pushed back against the ad’s claim that Democrats are seeking widespread tax increases.
“The billionaire-backed underground finance group is lying about James Talarico because they fear the people-power movement we are building to fix this broken and corrupt political system,” Ennis said in a statement. “Mr. James is proud to have voted for the largest property tax cut in Texas history and has consistently voted for tax cuts for working Texans.”
MAGA has at least $400 million in campaign funds, and Republican candidates are waiting on the president to make an investment.
“We’re going to spend whatever money it takes to help us,” Trump told reporters Friday.
The President stressed that these are funds to be used as he sees fit.
“This is my money,” Trump said, adding that it is “separate” from funds controlled by the Republican National Committee.
The president also said he could keep some of the funds until the 2028 election “if I so desire.” Trump is constitutionally barred from running for a third term.
Trump supported Paxton despite the Texas politician’s public scandals, but acknowledged last week that Paxton was not the most telegenic candidate.
“This is very insulting to him, but let me just say this: You may not like what he looks like, you may not like the way he looks, you may not like his TV interviews, but he was probably the best attorney general in this country,” President Trump said Wednesday at a White House event about the midterm elections.
Republicans in battleground states are urging the president to open his wallet and use some of his vast war chest.
Earlier this week, James Blair, who heads the president’s mid-term political strategy, sought to contain growing concerns and impatience.
“When it’s all over, at least all the Republicans will be very happy and relieved that they have support,” he said at an energy summit in Ohio.
