Musk's America PAC Pours Millions Into Key Midterm Senate Races
Elon Musk's America PAC is spending millions on the most pivotal US Senate races, with most of the money going against Democrats rather than for Republicans. WIRED has built a tracker to follow the spending in real time.
The latest episode of WIRED's Uncanny Valley podcast looks at how America PAC, the super PAC founded and mainly funded by Elon Musk, is getting involved in this November's US midterm elections.
From backing Trump to Senate battles
The group was set up in 2024 to help put Donald Trump in the White House, and it spent more than $260 million on that effort. With no presidential race this year, it is focusing on the most critical Senate contests, which will shape the makeup of Congress next year. Total spending is lower than before, but it is more targeted.
More against Democrats than for Republicans
According to WIRED's figures, for every dollar spent supporting a Republican candidate, more than two dollars go toward opposing a Democrat. In Texas, where several Musk companies are based, the group has spent roughly $9 million attacking Democrat James Talarico, compared with about $1 million promoting Ken Paxton. Similar ratios appear in the Ohio and Iowa Senate races.
Why the stakes are high
The hosts note that these races could give Democrats a path to controlling the Senate. Democratic sources are already talking about the investigations and subpoenas they would launch if they won the majority, which could expose Republicans, Musk included, to scrutiny and regulatory pressure. At the same time, the hosts questioned whether tough regulation could really hurt Musk's business empire, given how dependent the government is on SpaceX and Starlink.
Other topics
The episode also covers effective altruism, which Trump administration officials have labeled a dangerous ideology, and the backlash against the designer of the logo for Meta's AI assistant, Muse.
