Thursday, September 10, 2026 - President Donald Trump has promised a $5,000 federal “dividend” to every adult American if Republicans retain control of both chambers of Congress in November’s midterm elections.
Trump made the pledge on Wednesday at the Republican Party’s
first-ever midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, turning an election rally into
a pitch that could put billions of dollars directly into Americans’ pockets.
“If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the
United States Senate, both of them,” Trump said, he would issue the payment “to
every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000.”
Reuters reported that Trump called the proposed payment a
dividend and gave no further details about how the scheme would be funded or
implemented.
ABC News similarly reported that Trump told the convention
he would issue a $5,000 “dividend” to every adult American if Republicans held
on to the House and Senate.
The network quoted him as saying the proposal was possible
“because of our tremendous strength and success economically.”
Trump said the money would have to be spent within the
United States.
“The only caveat I have is that the dividend that we’re
making must be spent in the United States of America,” Reuters quoted him as
saying.
The proposal would represent a huge federal outlay.
Reuters estimated that paying $5,000 to roughly 270 million
American adults could cost about $1.35tn. The news agency also reported that
the legality and practical operation of the proposal were not immediately clear
The Associated Press reported that the proposed payments
would likely cost more than $1tn, while questions remained over how they could
be financed and administered. It also noted that Vice President JD Vance
appeared to qualify Trump’s promise by suggesting that wealthier Americans
could potentially be excluded.
The pledge comes as Republicans fight to retain their
congressional majorities in the November 3 midterm elections, with all seats in
the House and about one-third of Senate seats at stake.
Trump sought to make himself central to the campaign despite
not being on the ballot, telling supporters to vote as though he were running.
ABC News quoted him telling the crowd: “So I’m asking you to
pretend that I’m on the ballot. I’m on the ballot. I’m on the ballot.”
The president’s latest proposal also echoes an earlier idea
for direct payments to Americans.
Forbes reported in February 2025 that Trump was considering
a “DOGE dividend” funded from savings generated by the Department of Government
Efficiency, after Elon Musk proposed $5,000 refund cheques for taxpayers.
That earlier proposal did not become a nationwide $5,000
payment.
Trump’s latest announcement is therefore a political
promise, not an existing federal payment programme.
Any such scheme would require a mechanism for funding and
implementation, with Reuters reporting that no further details were immediately
available.
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