Senior Republican officials phoned Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Tuesday, alarmed that a new crypto super PAC — seeded by his former firm, Cantor Fitzgerald — planned to spend $1.75 million supporting Ken Paxton in a Texas primary runoff, Axios reported.
The move by Fellowship PAC threatened to escalate a race where President Trump has hesitated to choose sides between Paxton and Senator John Cornyn. GOP leaders viewed the expenditure as a political misstep that could deepen intraparty divisions.
Lutnick's sons now run Cantor Fitzgerald, from which he divested last year. Three people familiar with the matter said Republican officials appealed to the Commerce secretary to help reverse the decision, though it remains unclear if he followed up.
Chris LaCivita, Trump's former campaign manager and a key figure in a Cornyn-aligned super PAC, expressed private frustration publicly. "This was not a smart move," he posted on X. The National Republican Senatorial Committee also criticized the FEC filing.
The episode highlights the growing influence of crypto money in politics and the Republican Party's internal struggle to manage donor-backed super PACs that can disrupt preferred primary outcomes.