President Donald Trump promised to issue $5,000 dividend checks to U.S. citizens if Republicans win both the House and Senate in the midterms.
Trump announced the plan during his Sept. 9 remarks at the Republican midterm convention as he tries to overcome historical precedent that the president's party does poorly in the midterms. Trump mentioned the Trump Accounts and the $1,776 "warrior dividend" checks as other examples of his administration giving money back to the American people.
But Trump has previously floated big payments for adults: the DOGE savings stimulus checks and the tariff rebate checks. They never came to fruition.
Trump floated $2,000 tariff rebate checks
The idea to send $2,000 checks
to Americans from tariff revenue was far-fetched, even before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against some of Trump's tariff orders. Trump first floated the idea in July 2025.
In 2025, the federal government collected about $200 billion in additional tariff revenue due to Trump's widespread tariffs. The New York Times asked Trump in January 2026 if the tariffs would cover the rebate check costs, given Trump has also said the tariff revenue would go to deficit reduction and defense.
"We also have tremendous growth in the country," Trump replied, according to the transcript of the wide-ranging interview with the Times. "We have tariff revenue, which is tremendous."
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to educate the public on issues of fiscal policy impact, found in a November analysis that a $2,000 dividend will cost about $600 billion if it is designed like the COVID stimulus checks. Tariffs were projected to bring in about $300 billion in revenue per year before the court's ruling, meaning a yearly dividend would be twice as expensive as the original tariffs.
Tariff rebate came after DOGE dividend idea
What started as a post on X gained Elon Musk and Trump's attention: use the money saved by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to issue tax refunds to Americans. So came the idea of a $5,000 DOGE dividend.
"We're considering giving 20% of the DOGE savings to American citizens and 20% to paying down the debt," Trump said in Februrary 2025.
Like other stimulus checks, the dividends would require an act of Congress, and the idea faced criticism from House leadership. Musk stepped away in May 2025, and the agency ceased operation in July 2025.
Dividend checks would need Congressional action
Trump has expressed doubt about whether the checks would go through Congress, but the power of the purse remains with Congress. The stimulus checks sent out during the pandemic were passed by Congress and then signed by Trump, for example.
White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett also told CBS News' "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Dec. 21 that the president would "bring forth a proposal to Congress" about tariff dividend checks in 2026, drawing funding from sources beyond tariffs.
"We get taxes, we get tariffs, we get revenue from lots of places, and then Congress decides how to spend those monies," he told Brennan. "That's an appropriation. And so this would have to be money that would be an appropriation."
Bill for at least $600 rebate checks stalled in Congress
Though it may need Congressional help, Congress has not moved on a similar proposal.
In July, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, introduced the American Worker Rebate Act. It would give at least $600 to qualifying individuals out of the revenue earned by tariffs.
It was introduced shortly after Trump had signaled support for the idea in July, telling reporters, "we're thinking about a rebate," but said he was prioritizing paying down the national debt.
Hawley's bill was referred to the Committee on Finance, where it received no further action.
$1,776 dividend checks came from mega tax bill
The "warrior dividends" Trump mentioned at the midterm convention were covered by military housing funds that Congress allocated to the Defense Department in Trump's sprawling "One Big Beautiful Bill" passed last summer.
He had previously suggested the money would come from the tariff revenue.
Kinsey Crowley is the Trump Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at KCrowley@usatodayco.com. Follow her on X (Twitter), Threads, Bluesky and TikTok.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Trump teases $5,000 dividend for Americans. It isn't the first time
