Laura Ingraham did something unusual for a Fox News personality: She asked President Donald Trump a tough question.In an interview set to air on her show Thursday night, Ingraham asked the president about the promise he made Wednesday night to send $5,000 checks to every adult American citizen if Republicans maintained control of the Senate and the House in the midterms.Considering many Americans are struggling financially as a direct result of Trump’s policies, Ingraham wondered: Why wait?“Why not just give the money now? If you have the money, why not give it now?” she asked the president.Trump’s reason for waiting to dole out the cash probably won’t ease the concerns of skeptics who remember his other promised payouts that never happened.“Because the Democrats can’t do it. Because for them, it’s negative growth,” he said. “With us, it’s so positive,” Trump said. “So, we’re taking in $21 trillion. No country has ever taken in anywhere near that. It’s four or five times higher than the next one. All because of the beautiful word you and I love more than most others: tariffs.”LAURA INGRAHAM: Why not just give the money? If you have it, why not just give it now?TRUMP: Because the Democrats can't do it. Because with them it's negative growth. pic.twitter.com/Z7uhIvhItv— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 10, 2026A lot of things have to happen for Trump’s proposed election dividend to come to pass.That includes figuring out whether it’s actually legal, since, as BBC correspondent Sarah Smith noted, “It is against the law to try and offer a payment to influence people on how they are going to vote.”Sending the money to citizens could cost as much as $1.3 trillion and would likely raise inflation levels even higher ― if Congress even approved the plan.And, yes, some people found the excuse hard to swallow.1) He can't give any money because there is none to give unless he takes it from our grandchildren's hands.2) He never intended to give the 5000. 3) If tariffs brought in 21 trillion, we wouldn't have a deficit of 40 trillion, a quarter of which he caused. https://t.co/SvdDrbGdiM— Bonhoeffer's Child (@bonhoefferchild) September 10, 2026I don't think democrats will give it after the midterms either. And at this point it will be a hard sell if republicans retain control of both chambers.Trump is pitching the $5,000 just to blame it on democrats. That's all. Is it effective propaganda? Yeah, it could be. But for… https://t.co/IYLjKuFQMr— Jesús Enrique Rosas - The Body Language Guy (@Knesix) September 10, 2026That’s not an answer. I hope her MAGA audience is paying g attention. Seems she tried to call his bluff, but he just spewed evasive nonsense. 🤥 https://t.co/xELkghqSEt— Luna Jade (@lunajade) September 10, 2026