Amid the news that Elon Musk wants to merge Tesla and SpaceX, he is spending roughly $369 million on midterms races. That money could have an impact on some of the closest races in the country, like the Texas Senate race.

On today’s Big Take podcast, host David Gura is joined by Dana Hull, who covers Tesla and Elon Musk, and campaign finance reporter Bill Allison to discuss the value proposition of such massive spending for Musk and his empire.

Read more:

• Musk Pours $158 Million Into GOP Super PAC for Texas Senate Race
• Elon Musk PAC Ramps Up Midterms Spending to Help Republicans
• SpaceX, Tesla Boards Study Possible $3.5 Trillion Merger

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Host: David Gura; Guests: Dana Hull, Bill Allison; Produced by Julia Press, David Fox, Julia Weaver; Edited by Naomi Shavin; Engineering by Sean Carter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Energy prices are up — and President Trump is out of time to bring them down before the US midterm elections.

On today’s Big Take podcast, David Gura breaks down the factors keeping prices high and how much it could cost the Republican party with White House reporter Josh Wingrove and Will Kubzansky, who covers gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Host: David Gura; Guests: Josh Wingrove and Will Kubzansky; Produced by Julia Press, David Fox, Julia Weaver; Edited by Naomi Shavin; Engineering by Sean Carter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Trump is campaigning in Texas on Wednesday, rallying voters in a state that’s long been a Republican stronghold. His efforts in traditionally red states around the country show how surprisingly close many of these midterm races have become — and the outcome will determine if Trump’s party can hold onto the Senate and advance his agenda for the next two years.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Texas bureau chief Julie Fine and Washington correspondent Josh Wingrove join host Sarah Holder to break down the ultra-expensive, surprisingly competitive Texas Senate race and what it would mean for Trump’s presidency if he loses the Lone Star state.

Further Listening:

• Can $700 Million Buy Republicans the US Senate?
• Europe’s Debt Problem Is Back

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Host: Sarah Holder; Guests: Julie Fine, Josh Wingrove; Produced by David Fox, Julia Press; Edited by Naomi Shavin; Engineering by Sean Carter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.