Republican officials and lawmakers are increasingly reluctant to keep pouring money Ken Paxton's Texas Senate campaign, according to new reporting published Saturday that describes the MAGA-aligned candidate's bid as a "slow motion car crash" — and suggests the party may be finished throwing money into the wreck, especially after the state attorney general was caught on tape trashing his allies' efforts.

According to Politico, senior Republicans fear time is running short to rescue Paxton's candidacy. "Republicans know they have to spend big to save Ken Paxton," the outlet reported. "They're increasingly worried MAGA Inc. won't throw down in time."

In private conversations over recent weeks, senior Hill Republicans and GOP officials have nudged President Donald Trump's team to start spending more on the Texas Senate race before it is too late, Politico reported, citing three people with direct knowledge of those discussions who were granted anonymity to describe them. Those fears escalated after audio leaked of Paxton privately trashing Trump's midterm convention, with some worrying the episode could affect whether MAGA Inc., the pro-Trump super PAC, continues spending after a current wave of GOP ad bookings runs out Oct. 12 — the kind of off-cycle moment when outside groups typically decide whether a candidate is worth a fresh round of reservations.

The sense of urgency has grown as national Democrats, after months of holding off, finally began spending on behalf of their Senate nominee, James Talarico, and as polling in the race has tightened. Republicans expect the cost of salvaging Paxton's campaign will only skyrocket — and, per Politico, "they've started to panic."

"It's a five-alarm fire, no doubt. Can we put it out? I hope so," one GOP senator said.

"This is a slow-moving car crash that we're witnessing right now," a Texas Republican strategist agreed, adding, "and there's a 75 percent chance that the ultimate result here will be catastrophic from a GOP Senate majority standpoint."

Even with a massive war chest, Texas is turning into a huge money sink for the GOP, and senators worry the spending could hurt the party in tight races across the country as ever-larger sums are funneled into what should be a reliably red state. With MAGA Inc. money and additional GOP ad reservations, Politico reported, the race is already on track to top $200 million from outside Republican groups hoping to save Paxton.

"At some point I think the people spending that money are going to have to make hard choices and figure out where the money can have the biggest impact, and certainly Texas is the most expensive," said Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who lost to Trump-backed Paxton in the primary.

Frustration with Paxton himself is also mounting. According to Politico, top Republicans "have been stunned by what they described as unforced errors by the Texas Senate nominee." In one example, Paxton crossed one of the brightest red lines with Trump, telling a group of donors that "everybody's numbers dropped" after the president's GOP convention in Dallas last month.

"There seems to be very little strategy there," one Republican senator said, granted anonymity to candidly discuss the race. "Sometimes, I think [Paxton] wants to lose."