By admin 
The evidence is circumstantial, but the list is long. Supporters who have business with the federal government clearly see utility in contributing large amounts to President Donald Trump’s super PAC, MAGA Inc.
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At least four of the five $1 million-plus donors to MAGA Inc. also have federal contracts or policy they’re trying to influence with the Trump administration, according to the most recent legally required monthly donor disclosure filing with the Federal Election Commission. But there are numerous other donors to MAGA Inc., which has raised more than $340 million, seeking to influence the administration during Trump’s second term.
In contrast with some of his other pet projects that don’t require financial disclosures — like the East Wing teardown and White House ballroom plans, his inauguration, and his library — federal law means there is some amount of transparency about who is giving to MAGA Inc. The increasing donations of tech billionaires who want to influence crypto or AI regulation, or the lack thereof, are well-documented. But there are many interests giving to MAGA Inc.
Trump is constitutionally barred from being on the presidential ballot again, but the more than $300 million he has raised for his super PAC during his second term guarantees he could be a financial force in elections for years to come.
Federal law prohibits federal contractors from making political donations, but individuals and companies without contracts have no such prohibition. Watchdog groups have alleged that some companies are exploiting loopholes. And there’s no direct evidence to tie a political donation to a specific action by the White House.
Asked whether donors get special consideration from the president, a White House spokesperson, Anna Kelly, said in an email:
“The only factor guiding President Trump’s decision making is what is best for the American people. Any insinuation otherwise is lazy, tired, and false.”
MAGA Inc. did not respond to a request for comment.
Quick change on e-cigarettes
On April 30, a company called RAI Services Company gave $5 million to MAGA Inc. RAI is a subsidiary of Reynolds American, the tobacco company. It was through RAI Services Company that Reynolds officially argued against an FDA prohibition on flavored e-cigarettes. Reynolds did not respond to a request for comment.
Within two weeks of RAI Services Company giving the donation to MAGA Inc., the following events occurred:
Trump personally upbraided his FDA commissioner, Marty Makary, over opposition to flavored e-cigarettes.
The FDA reversed course to allow US tobacco companies to sell e-cigarettes.
Makary resigned after Trump earlier approved his firing.
The New York Times also reported that Trump had lunch at his Florida golf club with an executive from Reynolds and two of the company’s lobbyists within two days of the donation.
There is nothing to specifically tie the donation to the action by the FDA. And CNN reported that Makary was on thin ice with the Trump administration for a variety of issues in addition to the flavored e-cigarettes.
What is Reynolds’ argument in favor of legally selling e-cigarettes? That it is better for US companies to sell them legally than for Chinese products to dominate a black market.
Nursing home execs were happy about a rule change
The Times also reported earlier this year about a group of nursing home executives who, combined, donated nearly $4.8 million to MAGA Inc. Industry leaders later lunched with Trump at his DC-area golf club in the summer of 2025, according to the Times. A month later the government permanently revoked a Biden-era rule that would have increased the minimum number of staff at nursing homes.
The American Health Care Association, the group that lobbies on behalf of nursing homes, pointed out the rule had already been paused by courts and by law in the months before the contributions or Trump’s meeting with executives.
“Like any other non-partisan advocacy organization, AHCA has a long history of engaging with presidents and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to help educate policymakers and collaborate on issues that impact our residents and caregivers,” AHCA spokesperson Rachel Reeves said in a statement.
An interest in nuclear power in space
Another million-dollar April donor is Kamal Ghaffarian, who oversees a portfolio of companies focused on space exploration and nuclear power. One company, X-Energy and its subsidiary Triso-X, got clearance in February to develop the first US nuclear fuel fabrication facility in more than 50 years, according to a post by Ghaffarian. X-Energy announced its IPO on April 15, within a week of Ghaffarian cutting the check to MAGA Inc. and the day after the White House issued on the importance of developing nuclear power in space, which is also a goal of Ghaffarian’s. Another of Ghaffarian’s companies, Axiom, was selected by NASA in January to lead a manned space flight next year, among other contracts with NASA and the Department of Defense. Ghaffarian did not respond to a request for comment through his investment company IBX.
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A private detention center operator hopes for more
GEO Group is one of the private companies helping facilitate Trump’s mass deportation efforts. It owns the New Jersey immigration detention facility that has been the subject of protests over living conditions in recent weeks, for instance. In fact, GEO Group has gotten billions in federal contracts since Trump took office for the second time.
A company related to GEO Group, GEO Reentry Services LLC, gave MAGA Inc. $1 million on April 24. GEO Reentry Services does not have federal contracts. GEO Group got more than $800 million from ICE alone in FY2025 and nearly $600 million so far in FY2026, according to USA Spending. It has been a top recipient of contracts from ICE during Trump 2.0, according to the Project on Government Oversight.
The $1 million donation to MAGA Inc. is only the latest contribution by the company or its employees to Trump, but not all the news has been good. The Washington Post reported in March that GEO Group had been locked out of a recent round of contracts for new detention facilities. GEO Group did not respond to a request for comment.
Federal law prohibits political spending by contractors as a way to ward off pay-to-play schemes, but the FEC deadlocked over a watchdog’s complaint about a GEO subsidiary’s donation during the first Trump administration.
During his second administration, the FEC lacks enough commissioners to even conduct such an investigation.
Crypto investor is tied to UFC fight promotion
Bijan Tehrani is a cryptocurrency investor who gave $1 million to MAGA Inc. on April 27. His company, Stake.us, is a crypto-backed gambling site. It was featured in promotions for the fights Trump shared on his Truth Social platform, lending the controversial betting site at least an implied presidential endorsement, as the journalist Judd Legum reported. A request for comment made to Stake.us was not returned.
There are many other examples of Trump donors finding reasons to be happy with the Trump administration, like the woman who gave MAGA Inc. $1 million in 2025. Her father, a Venezuela-born businessman who had taken a plea deal in corruption charges related to the former governor of Puerto Rico, was later pardoned. The White House told CNN at the time the pardons were granted because the charges were brought due to political motivations.
Here’s another one from last week:
Penalty withdrawn for billionaire twins who gave matching donations
The billionaire Winklevoss twins, who combined to give $1 million donations to Trump’s super PAC in 2025 (and unknown amounts to his ballroom project), got some good news from the federal government in May.
A penalty against them from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission was withdrawn.
Trump’s first nominee to lead the CFTC, Brian Quintenz, had his nomination withdrawn by the White House last year, something he said resulted from the twins lobbying Trump.
The person who did get the CFTC job, Chairman Michael Selig, said Tuesday that decision to withdraw the penalty was undoing what he said was a politically motivated enforcement actions targeting the crypto industry during the Biden administration.
“They politically targeted people like the Winklevoss twins, and that’s not acceptable. We’re righting those wrongs. We’re going to start fresh,” Selig said on CNBC.
Marijuana group gets creative to get Trump’s attention
The American Rights and Reform PAC, a marijuana legalization advocacy group, gave $1 million in two separate donations to MAGA Inc. in July of last year. Months later, in December, Trump signed an executive order expediting marijuana reclassification. The PAC did not respond to a request for comment.
CNN has reported on a much larger lobbying effort pushing Trump to make good on his campaign promise to reclassify the drug. For instance, the group aired pro-marijuana ads specifically targeting Trump’s TVs at the White House and Mar-a-Lago, CNN reported in April.
The lesson here, at least as far as perception goes, is that people who want to be noticed by Trump and his administration know where to start: writing a check to MAGA Inc.
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CNN’s David Wright and Emily Condon contributed to this report.