--- title: Trump Announces $5,000 Dividend if Republicans Win Midterms description: Trump made the promise of a “Trump dividend” to adult U.S. citizens, but some are skeptical about the proposal. canonical: https://time.com/article/2026/09/10/trump-dividend-five-thousand-dollars-midterms-republican-convention/ author: Miranda Jeyaretnam article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-09-10T08:00:00.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-09-10T07:59:56.178Z article:section: Politics og:title: Trump Announces $5,000 Dividend if Republicans Win Midterms og:description: Trump made the promise of a “Trump dividend” to adult U.S. citizens, but some are skeptical about the proposal. og:url: https://time.com/article/2026/09/10/trump-dividend-five-thousand-dollars-midterms-republican-convention/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt846a471f736a76e8/6aa2620145f79309af170489/trump_rnc.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1024 og:image:height: 576 og:image:alt: trump rnc.jpg og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Trump Announces $5,000 Dividend if Republicans Win Midterms twitter:description: Trump made the promise of a “Trump dividend” to adult U.S. citizens, but some are skeptical about the proposal. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt846a471f736a76e8/6aa2620145f79309af170489/trump_rnc.jpg?branch=production&width=1024&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Trump Promises $5,000 Dividend if Republicans Win Both House and Senate > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Miranda Jeyaretnam](https://time.com/author/miranda-jeyaretnam/)  ## Miranda Jeyaretnam Reporter Sep 10, 2026 8:00 AM UTC  President Donald Trump speaks on stage on the first day of the 2026 Republican National Convention at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, on Sept. 9, 2026. President Donald Trump speaks on stage on the first day of the 2026 Republican National Convention at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, on Sept. 9, 2026. Tasos Katopodis—Getty Images  by [Miranda Jeyaretnam](https://time.com/author/miranda-jeyaretnam/)  ## Miranda Jeyaretnam Reporter Sep 10, 2026 8:00 AM UTC President [Donald Trump](https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people/2026/donald-trump/) has promised a $5,000 payment to every American adult if Republicans [retain control of both chambers of Congress](https://time.com/article/2026/08/14/congress-turnover-house-senate-republican-democrat-primaries-midterm-elections/) in the coming [midterm elections](https://time.com/tag/midterms/). Trump [made the promise](https://x.com/RapidResponse47/status/2097871833605279894) of a so-called “Trump dividend” at the Republican Party’s midterm convention in Dallas on Wednesday night. He said the money would have to be spent in the U.S., although he did not offer details on how that restriction would be enforced. TIME has reached out to the White House for comment. “Here is my promise: If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the United States Senate,” Trump said, “I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000, very much like a successful company will do a cash distribution to its shareholders.” Such a plan would require congressional approval. Sen. Bernie Moreno (R, Ohio) endorsed the proposal and [said](https://x.com/berniemoreno/status/2097872890582446418) he would prepare legislation to pass the dividend after the election. The proposal could also have significant economic consequences. The U.S. has roughly 240 million adult citizens, according to [Census Bureau data](https://data.census.gov/table/ACSST1Y2024.S2901), putting the proposal’s cost at approximately $1.2 trillion. Unless offset by new revenue or spending cuts, the payments would likely widen the federal budget deficit—which [totaled nearly $1.8 trillion](https://www.cbo.gov/system/files/2025-11/61307-MBR-FY25-final.pdf) in fiscal 2025—and could add to inflationary pressures. Vice President J.D. Vance later narrowed the proposal, suggesting that wealthy Americans would not qualify. He added that the payments could be financed by tariff revenue, which amounted to around [$154.5 billion](https://fiscaldata.treasury.gov/static-data/published-reports/mts/MonthlyTreasuryStatement%5F202607.pdf) in the first 10 months of fiscal 2026 through July. Trump suggested that the dividend would be financed by “tremendous economic success” from his policies. “The reason the Democrats can’t do that is because they don’t do tariffs, they don’t take in money, all they know is poverty,” the President said. In his first term, Trump authorized two rounds of congressionally-approved [stimulus checks](https://time.com/5821546/stimulus-checks/) during the COVID-19 pandemic. On Wednesday, he also compared the promised dividend with the $1,776 “Warrior Dividend” announced for military service members in December, which was funded by a congressionally approved housing supplement. Some, however, are skeptical about the idea. Rep. Chip Roy, (R, Texas) told [Politico](https://www.politico.com/news/2026/09/09/trump-pledges-a-5-000-dividend-to-all-us-adults-if-the-gop-wins-the-midterms-01070322), “I would like to know how they would plan to pay for … back of envelope … well over $1 trillion.” The Democratic National Committee said Trump and Republicans have repeatedly promised rebate checks that never materialized. The President previously promised to send [$2,000 tariff dividends](https://time.com/7332447/trump-promises-check-to-americans-tariffs-revenue-dividend-stimulus/) to Americans. He also endorsed returning 20% of [DOGE savings](https://time.com/7222251/doge-musk-federal-workers-government/) to taxpayers and depositing $1,000 or more into eligible Americans’ health savings accounts. None of these payments has gone out: the [DOGE](https://time.com/7336327/doge-disbanded-elon-musk/) and tariff dividends were never enacted, and the HSA legislation—a Republican alternative to extending [enhanced ACA premium tax credits](https://time.com/7332658/government-shutdown-over-aca-subsidies/), which [expired](https://time.com/article/2026/09/08/losing-health-insurance-affects-everyone/) at the [end of 2025](https://time.com/7342062/health-care-costs-aca-subsidies-congress-2026/)—failed in the Senate. The Administration is [reportedly preparing](https://www.axios.com/2026/09/09/trump-obamacare-rebates-election) a $500 rebate for some unsubsidized ACA enrollees. “Donald Trump and Republicans are once again offering empty promises to Americans,” DNC Rapid Response Director Kendall Witmer said in a [statement](https://democrats.org/new-trump-once-again-makes-empty-promises-to-americans-for-votes-as-republicans-face-defeat-in-november/). “The only people reaping the benefits of Trump’s economy are himself, his family, and his ultra-rich elite donors. Meanwhile, working families get nothing except sky-high receipts at the grocery store and the pump, unaffordable healthcare premiums, and wages that aren’t keeping up with inflation.” Trump’s pledge comes at a [low point for his popularity](https://time.com/article/2026/08/04/midterm-elections-republicans-democrats-polls-economy-trump/) in his second term. His approval rating fell from [47% at the beginning of the term](https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/reuters-ipsos-trump-inauguration-survey) to [33% in mid-August](https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/majority-americans-say-corruption-influences-decisions-federal-government), according to Reuters/Ipsos polling. Americans have [expressed growing dissatisfaction](https://time.com/article/2026/06/25/us-iran-deal-mou-trump-approval-war-polls/) with [the economy](https://time.com/article/2026/05/13/trump-economy-financial-concerns-us-pentagon-iran-war-cost/) and [the war in Iran](https://time.com/article/2026/05/18/trump-approval-rating-iran-war-economy/), now in its seventh month. [Concerns](https://time.com/article/2026/08/26/survey-economy-personal-finance-purchases-usa/) about [affordability](https://time.com/7334734/trump-mcdonalds-affordability-extra-value-meals-costs-consumer/), intensified by [wartime supply disruptions](https://time.com/article/2026/06/19/us-iran-deal-strait-hormuz-shipping-oil-gas-prices/), have [propelled](https://time.com/article/2026/08/05/progressives-rack-up-primary-wins/) progressive Democratic candidates to a [series of primary victories](https://time.com/article/2026/06/24/mamdani-new-york-primary-endorsements-election-results-lander-valdez-avila-chevalier-reactions/). The President cast the congressional elections as a referendum on his presidency, telling voters at the convention to “pretend that I’m on the ballot.” “If the Republicans win, you win with us,” Trump said. “Now all we have to do is win.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/09/10/trump-dividend-five-thousand-dollars-midterms-republican-convention/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/09/10/trump-dividend-five-thousand-dollars-midterms-republican-convention/"},"headline":"Trump Promises $5,000 Dividend if Republicans Win Both House and Senate","datePublished":"2026-09-10T08:00:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-09-10T07:59:56.178Z","description":"Trump announced a “Trump dividend” for adult U.S. citizens, but some are skeptical.","url":"https://time.com/article/2026/09/10/trump-dividend-five-thousand-dollars-midterms-republican-convention/","keywords":["republicans","News Desk","overnight","Donald Trump"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt846a471f736a76e8/6aa2620145f79309af170489/trump_rnc.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Miranda Jeyaretnam","jobTitle":"Reporter","url":"https://time.com/author/miranda-jeyaretnam/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt846a471f736a76e8/6aa2620145f79309af170489/trump_rnc.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"trump rnc.jpg","caption":"","creditText":"Tasos Katopodis—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/republicans/","name":"republicans"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/article/2026/09/10/trump-dividend-five-thousand-dollars-midterms-republican-convention/","name":"Trump Promises $5,000 Dividend if Republicans Win Both House and Senate"}}]}] ```