What super PACs are, how they work, and which ones matter.
A $20 million DHS ad campaign praising President Trump was halted by a federal judge. Trump says MAGA Inc. will pay instead, and watchdogs say that creates a new legal problem.
Two watchdog groups say President Trump’s public claims that he controls MAGA Inc. describe a violation of federal law. MAGA Inc. calls the complaints frivolous, and the FEC can’t act on them.
Eight episodes from both parties that tested the edges of campaign finance law, from MAGA Inc. and America PAC to Future Forward, Fairshake and Democratic meddling in GOP primaries.
Updated Oct. 23, 2026: Sherrod Brown leads the Democratic list, but every Democrat on it is being outspent by Republican super PACs. Democrats are leaning on their own candidates’ fundraising instead.
Updated Oct. 23, 2026: Ken Paxton leads a list dominated by Senate Republicans, as super PACs funded by Elon Musk, MAGA Inc. and Senate Leadership Fund make up for weak candidate fundraising.
Trump’s super PAC sat on more than $400 million for 18 months, then spent $277 million in six weeks, mostly through two new groups. Here’s where it went and why it drew a legal complaint.