President Donald Trump has floated the idea of sending $2,000 tariff dividend checks to Americans and his treasury secretary said Sunday, Nov. 16 "we will see" if that plan will actually come to fruition.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Maria Bartiromo on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures" that the administration would "need legislation for that" when asked about the checks, adding that the checks "could go out." Bessent also said the checks would be for "working families."
Trump recently suggested the possibility of checks from tariff revenue. "A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone," he posted Nov. 9 on Truth Social.
Three days later, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt echoed the president's support for the dividends when asked about it on Nov. 12. "The White House is committed to making that happen, yes, and we are currently exploring all legal options to get that done," she said.
Trump broached the idea in July, saying tariff revenue could lead to "a little rebate, but the big thing we want to do is pay down debt."
