Trump's $600 million war chest: How he plans to wield his power in the
midterms and beyond
[May 23, 2025]
By JILL COLVIN and CHRIS MEGERIAN
WASHINGTON (AP) — Between a barrage of executive orders, foreign trips
and norm-shattering proclamations, Donald Trump has also been busy
raking in cash.
The president has amassed a war chest of at least $600 million in
political donations heading into the midterm elections, according to
three people familiar with the matter. It’s an unprecedented sum in
modern politics, particularly for a lame-duck president who is barred by
the U.S. Constitution from running again.
Trump is keeping an aggressive fundraising schedule with the ultimate
goal of raising $1 billion or more to back his agenda and hold the House
and Senate next November, according to the people, who spoke on
condition of anonymity to share internal details of the fundraising
efforts.
The preoccupation with fundraising might seem highly unusual for a
president who was notably averse to dialing for dollars when he first
ran. But according to people familiar with his thinking, it makes
perfect sense: By amassing money, Trump amasses power.
Trump is eager to reverse the tide of Democrats routinely outraising GOP
candidates and wants to maximize his own impact as president. Any money
left over after his term could help him maintain enormous influence over
the Republican Party, cementing his status as its most influential
kingmaker — and potential patron — through 2028 and beyond.
“It’s leverage,” said Marc Short, who served as Trump’s director of
legislative affairs during his first term and later as Vice President
Mike Pence’s chief of staff. “It’s a reflection of the power that he
still holds.”
Inside Trump’s money operation
The day after winning November’s election, Trump began calling top staff
with a surprising plan, according to two people with knowledge of the
conversations. He wanted to start raising money again, immediately, not
just for the transition and his inauguration, but for political
committees that would demonstrate his clout throughout his second term.
Trump made calls to donors himself. One of the people described the
message as “double up.” If a donor had given $1 million before the
election, Trump wanted another $1 million now.
People in Trump’s orbit describe him as someone with a strong sense of
timing, and he knew that his influence was at its peak right after
winning his comeback campaign. He had yet to make any personnel or
policy decisions that could alienate key constituencies, and there was
no shortage of people who wanted to get on board with the victorious
team.
He has continued raising money at a rapid pace while president,
headlining a series of high-dollar fundraisers, including a $1.5
million-a-head event on May 5 at the Trump National Golf Club in
Virginia for “crypto and AI innovators,” and a pair of “candlelight
dinners” at his Mar-a-Lago in Florida on April 4 and March 1.
Democrats and campaign finance watchdogs have long complained about
Trump’s blending of official and campaign business. Many of the
attendees have potential business before the federal government. But a
conservative Supreme Court and Republicans who control Congress have for
years weakened campaign finance rules.
The money is spread across a number of different committees, including
MAGA Inc., Trump’s longtime super PAC, and Securing American Greatness,
a nonprofit 501(c)(4) that earlier this month began airing a commercial
backing Trump’s economic agenda and encouraging the passage of his tax
plan “to get our economy back on track.”
The operation is being overseen by Chris LaCivita, Trump’s 2024
co-campaign manager, and Tony Fabrizio, the president’s longtime
pollster. There are also other entities, including Never Surrender,
Trump’s renamed leadership PAC, and outside groups like the Elon
Musk-backed Building America’s Future, which LaCivita and Fabrizio have
also joined as senior advisers.
There’s also the fundraising for Trump’s eventual presidential library
and the nearly $240 million raised for his inauguration festivities.
‘I’m going to be very active’
One of the goals of the groups is to back Trump’s agenda and help push
his legislative priorities through Congress. Securing American Greatness
plans to spend more than $10 million on its ad, which has been airing
across the country.
Most, however, is being held in reserve as they prepare to spend big in
the 2026 primaries and midterms, with a particular focus on holding and
expanding Republicans’ majority in the House. Aides are eyeing
advertising, rallies and travel to back favored candidates. They may
also challenge incumbent Republicans who have crossed the president or
failed to back his agenda.
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President Donald Trump smiles as he speaks in the Oval Office of the
White House, Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex
Brandon)
Trump has made clear that he intends to play an outsized role in
next year’s midterm elections and has already begun issuing a flurry
of endorsements in races across the country.
In 2018, Republicans lost control of the House in his first term to
Democrats who went on to block much of Trump’s agenda and then
impeached him twice, first in 2019 over his efforts to pressure
Ukraine to investigate former President Joe Biden, and then for his
role in the Capitol insurrection after he lost the 2020 election.
Trump, according to people familiar with his thinking, is
particularly focused on avoiding another impeachment and maintaining
his power through the end of his second term.
“I’m going to be very active,” Trump said of his plans for the
midterms in a recent interview on “Meet the Press,” where he noted
he’s “raised a lot of money for congressmen and senators that I
think are really good people.”
Trump and his aides are aware that the party in power typically
loses seats in the midterms. But they hope that by ramping up
spending before Democrats, they can break that trend.
“We’re not going to let that be a self-fulfilling prophecy,” Trump
said at the annual National Republican Congressional Committee
President’s Dinner last month.
He is also using official levers of power against Democrats ahead of
the midterms, including with an executive order demanding immediate
changes to how elections are run. He ordered the Justice Department
to investigate ActBlue, the fundraising platform that has
supercharged Democratic campaigns.
Will he follow through?
It remains to be seen how much Trump will ultimately spend on other
candidates. The president has a long history of being stingy with
his money, choosing instead to wield his influence by bestowing
endorsements and staging rallies that energize the Republican base.
In 2022, as Trump prepared to run for president again, Republicans
repeatedly griped that he was hoarding money for himself and not
spending more on his endorsed candidates.
In the end, MAGA Inc. spent $19 million during the 2022 midterms,
mostly opposing Democrats, including $3.4 million targeting now
Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman, $3 million opposing Arizona’s Mark
Kelly, and $3.4 million against Georgia’s Raphael Warnock. All three
won their Senate races against Trump-favored candidates.
That sum was far eclipsed by the $260 million spent by the
Congressional Leadership Fund and the $290 million spent by the
Senate Leadership Fund, the campaign arms of House and Senate
Republicans.
This time around, however, one of the people familiar with his
operation said that they would not be surprised if Trump’s groups
end up outspending them. Those who think Trump will be more generous
say he has little else to do with the cash, even as he muses
publicly about trying to run for a third term in defiance of the
Constitution’s 22nd Amendment.
Others are more skeptical.
At the National Republican Senate Committee, for instance, staff
have emphasized to incumbents that they are expected to build their
own professional operations, with sufficient staff and
infrastructure, so they won’t need to rely on the president or other
outside groups for help.
“I would be shocked if that changes,” said Short, the former Trump
and Pence aide. “I don’t think anybody’s sitting there thinking:
Maybe he’ll give me some of that.”
___
Megerian reported from Washington. Associated Press writer Zeke
Miller contributed to this report.
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