Trump Reiterates $5,000 Dividend Check Plan If Republicans Hold Congress After Midterms

Trump Says Payments Would Not Come From Taxpayers

Trump first announced the proposed dividends at the Republican National Committee’s midterm convention last week, saying his administration could afford the payments because “we’ve done so well”. He said the checks would be restricted to people in the US.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has said the payments would not rely on taxpayer money. He said the administration could generate the funds Trump wants to distribute without increasing the deficit or directly drawing from taxpayers.

White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett has suggested that the payments could be included in a congressional reconciliation package. However, the administration cannot spend federal money without Congress appropriating the funds.

The proposal has also drawn comparisons with the $1,776 payments made to about 1.45 million US service members last year. Those payments were a one-time housing supplement included in Trump’s tax and spending law, the One Big Beautiful Bill.

Funding, Inflation Concerns Cloud $5,000 Plan

The proposal has faced questions over whether tariff revenue could cover the cost. Paul Berman, a professor at George Washington University Law School, previously estimated that distributing $5,000 checks would require about $1.3 trillion.

Trump’s tariffs have generated roughly $341 billion in net revenue since the beginning of 2025, according to Treasury data cited by the Bipartisan Policy Center. The Supreme Court has also struck down the administration’s sweeping tariffs and ordered a refund of $166 billion in tariff revenue.

Berman has argued that even if sufficient tariff revenue were available, Congress would still control how such money could be spent.

Some Republicans have also raised concerns about the plan. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis pointed to the national debt and warned that the payments could fuel inflation.

Senator Susan Collins of Maine said the limited details available suggest the proposed dividend could have no income cap and could be “extraordinarily costly”.