EPISODE · May 7, 2026 · 7 MIN
The Billionaire Donors Behind Trump’s Midterm Superweapon
from Forbes Daily Briefing · host Forbes
Last year, the GOP’s legacy donor class and its newer crop of tech and finance billionaires found common cause: writing enormous checks to support Donald Trump. In February, billionaire Kelcy Warren and his fossil fuel pipeline company, Energy Transfer, each sent $12.5 million to MAGA Inc., a Trump-aligned super PAC. Just a few months later, OpenAI cofounder and president Greg Brockman and his wife cut checks for $12.5 million each. That makes Warren and Brockman the biggest individual donors to MAGA Inc. But the roster is deeper than two names and four eight-figure checks. Forbes counts at least 24 billionaires or billionaire families who have given over $1 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings covering through the end of March. (Brockman is not currently on Forbes’ list of billionaires, but he did claim to be one in testimony related to Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI). Collectively, these ten-figure club members, plus Brockman, donated $118 million, about a third of the $350 million war chest MAGA Inc has built. By Kyle Khan-Mullins, Forbes Staff Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What this episode covers
Last year, the GOP’s legacy donor class and its newer crop of tech and finance billionaires found common cause: writing enormous checks to support Donald Trump. In February, billionaire Kelcy Warren and his fossil fuel pipeline company, Energy Transfer, each sent $12.5 million to MAGA Inc., a Trump-aligned super PAC. Just a few months later, OpenAI cofounder and president Greg Brockman and his wife cut checks for $12.5 million each. That makes Warren and Brockman the biggest individual donors to MAGA Inc. But the roster is deeper than two names and four eight-figure checks. Forbes counts at least 24 billionaires or billionaire families who have given over $1 million, according to Federal Election Commission filings covering through the end of March. (Brockman is not currently on Forbes’ list of billionaires, but he did claim to be one in testimony related to Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI). Collectively, these ten-figure club members, plus Brockman, donated $118 million, about a third of the $350 million war chest MAGA Inc has built. By Kyle Khan-Mullins, Forbes Staff Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
NOW PLAYING
The Billionaire Donors Behind Trump’s Midterm Superweapon
No transcript for this episode yet
Similar Episodes
No similar episodes found.