At RNC midterm convention, Trump pitches $5,000 checks to U.S. citizens — but only if GOP wins House and Senate

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Updated on: September 10, 2026 / 12:25 AM EDT

/ CBS News

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President Trump vowed Wednesday to send a $5,000 "dividend" to every American citizen after the midterms, but only if Republicans hold onto control of the House and Senate.The announcement came almost an hour into Mr. Trump's speech to the Republican National Committee's first-of-its-kind midterm convention in Dallas, as he seeks to rally Republican voters and fight significant political headwinds in the November elections."If the Republicans win, you win with us and you get $5,000," he said.The president did not offer details on how the payments — which he dubbed "Trump Dividends" — would work, including whether he plans to ask Congress to authorize the checks. He has floated the idea of cutting checks to U.S. citizens in the past, proposing $2,000 dividends funded by tariffs last year.Mr. Trump argued the payments would be a consequence of the country's "tremendous economic success," and suggested they could be funded partially by his administration's tariffs on foreign goods. The U.S. has brought in just under $500 billion in tariff and excise tax revenue since the start of last year, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center. More than $100 billion has been refunded due to a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that struck down many of the administration's tariffs.Sending out $5,000 checks to all of America's approximately 245 million adult citizens could cost upwards of $1 trillion.