'He doesn't care': Republicans fear Trump will waste massive campaign war chest on himself

The Dispatch reports President Donald Trump has fundraised aggressively since winning reelection, but Republican lobbyists fear whether he will spend wisely to preserve Republican majorities in the House and Senate.

Trump is nothing if not a money-maker, reports the Dispatch, and the president now controls “roughly $483 million through eight political entities, including $304.4 million held in MAGA Inc.” Now, he’s looking to spend it, but nobody’s sure where.

“…[T]op Trump strategists directing the effort aren’t saying how much money is available for candidate campaigns — and some GOP insiders doubt the president will greenlight a major investment,” reports the Dispatch.

Senior members of Trump's political operation claimed a considerable sum of that cash was slated for Republicans running for Congress at a National Republican Senatorial Committee retreat in Palm Beach, Florida. But some Republican sources remain skeptical that Trump will spend his hundreds of millions on “dozens of 2026 congressional races, predicting any investment would be limited and reserved for the president's loyal allies.”

“If he’s not on the ballot, he doesn’t care,” said one “pessimistic GOP lobbyist” who attended the discussion. “They claim they’re going to spend all this money. Everyone’s shaking their head; no one believes them.”

The Dispatch reports that Trump “has a habit of hoarding campaign cash and declining to shareresources with fellow Republicans” without “an obvious benefit to himself.”

“The president also has a habit of unpredictability, with Republican insiders saying quietly that he often suggests the cavalry is coming to rescue vulnerable Republicans in the House and Senate but later changing his mind,” the Dispatch reports. “Reasons range from concluding the money would not be well spent to the perception that recipients of his largesse are insufficiently appreciative.”

Trump’s sheer charisma outpaces the fundraising skills of most Republican committees and organizations, and the Dispatch says this has allowed him to amass his colossal war chest and then pick and choose his recipients, as well as exert influence over the party’s legislative and campaign activities.

Additionally, the Dispatch reports Republicans in the House and Senate, and organizations like the NRSC and the National Republican Congressional Committee, might also face “logistical barriers to accessing portions of Trump’s $483 million war chest.”