Money Grab/Charge for access to the president
Reynolds American has given MAGA Inc. $8M, $5M a week before the FDA eased flavored-vape rules
Reynolds American gave MAGA Inc. $5 million on April 30, 2026, bringing its total to $8 million. Two days later tobacco executives lunched with Trump at his Jupiter, Florida golf club. Within a week the FDA issued guidance that could let major tobacco companies sell flavored vapes, and Commissioner Marty Makary resigned on May 12.
What happened
On April 30, 2026, a Reynolds American subsidiary gave $5 million to MAGA Inc., bringing its total to the super PAC to $8 million, according to a campaign finance report filed May 20. For years the FDA had refused to authorize most flavored e-cigarettes, which it considered the main route by which teenagers start vaping. Reynolds, which makes Vuse, wanted that changed.
On May 2, 2026, a Reynolds executive, two Reynolds lobbyists and two Altria executives had lunch with Trump at his golf club in Jupiter, Florida, and complained about FDA regulation of e-cigarettes, according to the New York Times. Trump tried to call FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, who did not answer. He then called Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Medicare chief Mehmet Oz and complained about the regulation.
Less than a week later the FDA issued new guidance, bypassing its usual rulemaking, that could let major tobacco companies sell flavored vapes. Four days after it was announced, on May 12, Makary resigned, telling associates he could not in good conscience remain head of an agency that backed such a policy. The Times found no definitive evidence linking the guidance to the lunch, the donation or lobbying. The White House said the donation had nothing to do with the policy.
Who benefited
Reynolds American and the rest of the vaping industry stood to gain access to a market the FDA had held back for years. The Times put it at a share of the $6 billion e-cigarette market now held by illegal Chinese competitors. MAGA Inc. received $8 million from the Reynolds subsidiary in total.
Who wanted something
Reynolds had given $8 million to MAGA Inc. and $10 million to a separate pro-Trump super PAC, and a Reynolds executive was invited to a White House donor dinner in October 2025. It took its complaint about the FDA to the president at lunch. Two executives from Altria, another tobacco company, also attended the lunch.
Who lost out
The flavor limits existed because flavored vapes are the main route by which teenagers start vaping. The guidance loosens that barrier. Makary, a Trump appointee, left the agency four days after the policy was announced.
Why it matters
The donation, the lunch, the phone calls, the guidance and the commissioner’s resignation all fell within about two weeks, from April 30 to May 12. The record shows the sequence, not a proven exchange. The Times found no definitive evidence of a link, and the White House denies one.
Sources AP (via WECT)NextDraft (quoting The New York Times)Kyunghyang Shinmun (citing The Wall Street Journal)