President Donald Trump reportedly plans to keep raising hundreds of millions of dollars for his political campaigns and operations, even though he’ll be on his way out of the White House by the next election.
The president is reportedly determined to maintain his stranglehold over the Republican Party even as he approaches the final two years of his presidency, with Axios reporting on Friday, November 6, that he has privately told his advisers he intends to keep fundraising through his MAGA Inc. super PAC.
Donald Trump Flickr/White House Photo
President Donald Trump delivers remarks at the Department of Justice in Washington, D.C., Friday, March 14, 2025. (Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian)
He may even launch a new organization.
According to the report, the operation would give President Trump the financial resources to influence Republican primaries and pressure legislators who break with his administration or policy agenda.
The fundraising efforts could even help determine who succeeds him as the party’s presidential nominee for 2028.
But there’s a problem: the president has already spent hundreds of millions of dollars attempting to maintain his influence over the Republican Party and keep Republican control of Congress. And it didn’t work.
In fact, it backfired massively.
Trump Spent, and Lost, $400 Million
MAGA Inc. is one of the country’s most powerful political fundraising operations and has been for some time. The super PAC has raised almost $450 million since the beginning of 2025.
Per Axios, the organization spent more than $400 million during the 2026 midterm elections, supporting Republican candidates across the country aligned with President Trump’s agenda.
The expenditure was an enormous level of expenditure for the campaign, and it didn’t pan out as expected.
In September, President Trump told Reuters he planned to commit between $400 million and $500 million from his PAC to the elections.
The Associated Press reported in late October that MAGA Inc. had already spent almost $277 million since the beginning of September, with $200 million transferred to the No Going Back PAC.
And despite that enormous expense, Democrats still secured historic victories across the country on Tuesday night, driven largely by widespread dissatisfaction with the war with Iran and President Donald Trump’s handling of the economy.
So, what does Trump do next?
Trump Has Millions Left
Trump may have spectacularly lost the midterm elections, but he now has two years to prepare for the next election and decide his next steps.
He also has approximately $164 million available as of October 14, according to campaign finance records— although any subsequent spending could mean the balance is now less.
The president could use those funds in various ways. While he won’t be running for election again himself, he could use what’s left of his die-hard MAGA base to raise funds and rally support for candidates who support his agenda, and to oppose candidates who oppose him.
With two years left in the White House, President Trump could keep using his influence and fundraising capabilities to discourage Republicans from openly challenging his policies and standing in the way of securing him a long-lasting legacy.
But while Trump may still be able to raise funds from his diehard supporters, he may finally start to struggle to raise money from big donors. After all, he won’t be running again, and he’s currently hugely unpopular.
Republicans Look Beyond Trump
Republicans are beginning to look beyond Trump, and the donors are, too.
Vice President JD Vance is even beginning to position himself as a post-Trump figure, publicly blaming the Iran war for Tuesday’s election losses and publishing a scathing analysis of what went wrong on his social media.
While President Trump has been polite about Vance’s words, the comments are widely seen as an effort by the vice president to distance himself from the president’s policies and give himself a chance in the 2028 primaries.
Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz has criticized the party’s failure to address voters’ economic concerns, too, and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis even described the election as almost an “extinction-level event” for the Republican Party.
So if President Trump wants to maintain his political influence, he has serious work to do.
He’ll need to rally his base, turn public opinion around, win the war with Iran, bring down gas prices, and more.
And the problem for the president is that, while some of this is achievable, other very important elements are not.
Trump cannot fix refining infrastructure overnight, and even if he wins the war with Iran, it could take years for the infrastructure lost or shut down in that war to come back online or be replaced.
Prices, then, could stay high for many years — well into 2028 and through the next presidential election.
It’s no wonder, then, that Republicans are looking beyond Trump — and if the president really does intend to exert his influence over the party, he’ll only be able to do so if he dramatically improves the public mood about his policies and donors agree he’s on the right track.
About the Author: Jack Buckby
Jack Buckby is a British researcher and analyst specializing in defense and national security, based in New York. His work focuses on military capability, procurement, and strategic competition, and he produces and edits analysis for policy and defense audiences. He brings extensive editorial experience, with a career output spanning over 1,000 articles at National Security Journal, and has previously authored books and papers on extremism and deradicalization.
