President Donald Trump has revived his promise to send every adult U.S. citizen a $5,000 check, but only if Republicans keep control of Congress in the midterms. The pledge comes alongside two smaller cash programs already underway, as Republicans campaign on affordability concerns less than a month before Election Day.
With Election Day less than a month away, Trump is touting two federal cash-payment programs already in motion while renewing a much larger $5,000 check promise tied to the midterm outcome. He said Saturday in a Truth Social video that if Republicans win the House and Senate in November, he will give $5,000 to all adult U.S. citizens. He made a similar pledge last month at the Republican National Committee's first midterm convention in Dallas.
Trump hasn't provided details on who would authorize the payments or where the money would come from. Sending $5,000 to every adult citizen would cost roughly $1.2 trillion and require congressional approval.
Smaller payments already moving
On Friday, Trump announced one-time $90 payments to 20.8 million Medicare beneficiaries, funded through the Medicare Improvement Fund. Those claims followed $500 Obamacare "refund" checks that began going out last week to roughly 950,000 people who bought unsubsidized coverage through the federal marketplace.
A Reuters analysis found that 71% of the Obamacare money — $339 million — is going to residents of 13 states with some of the country's most competitive Senate and gubernatorial races, though eligibility is based on insurance status, not voting status.
Some Republicans raise deficit concerns
Together, the cash-payment offers arrive as Republicans head into the final stretch of a midterm campaign focused on concerns about prices and the economy. But the $5,000 "Trump dividend" remains just a promise, and some Republicans have raised concerns about its effect on the deficit and inflation.
Rep. David Schweikert, R-Ariz., told Reuters last month he would fight to stop the proposal, warning it could push interest rates higher. According to CNBC, Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., called the plan a "political bribe" in a Sept. 10 interview with CNN, and said Congress controls federal spending.
The White House and the offices of Schweikert and Raskin did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Source: CNBC
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