Some Trump supporters doubt $5,000 checks will arrive after midterms

President Donald Trump’s proposal for $5,000 payments if Republicans retain control of Congress after the Nov. 3 US midterm elections faces doubts even among some supporters, the Associated Press reported on October 20. The White House has described the payments as conditional; its announcement did not establish that checks will be sent.

The White House called the proposal a ‘Trump Dividend’ in its September announcement and said it would pay $5,000 to every adult American citizen if Republicans retain both the House and Senate. The condition makes control of Congress central to the promise as voters decide which party will hold each chamber.

Why some voters doubt the $5,000 checks

Amy Frederiksen, a former Republican Minnesota Senate majority leader who now runs a public affairs firm, questioned whether the pledge would persuade voters. ‘The trust on this is already gone for most people,’ she said, according to the AP. A September AP-NORC poll found that roughly half of registered voters said Trump does not keep his promises to Americans.

How the administration says it could pay

The White House has pointed to trade deals, foreign investment commitments, government stakes in private companies, and oil and mineral deals as reasons it says the payments are possible, the AP reported. It has framed the proposed checks as relief from inflation. When the AP asked weeks earlier whether the administration was modeling their economic impact, Christopher Phelan, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, declined to answer.

Trump previously backed $2,000 dividends from tariff revenue and refunds linked to spending cuts by the Department of Government Efficiency, according to the AP. Neither materialized. He has also pledged separate $90 payments to 20 million Medicare enrollees and $500 rebates for people the administration says were overcharged for their Obamacare plans. Those pledges are separate from the proposed $5,000 checks.