Trump Says Tariffs Will Pay for $2,000 Payouts to Americans
“We are now the Richest, Most Respected Country In the World, With Almost No Inflation, and A Record Stock Market Price.”
President Donald Trump on Sunday renewed his pledge to send every American a $2,000 “tariff dividend,” saying the payments will come from the billions raised through his sweeping import duties. The announcement came just days after the Supreme Court heard arguments over whether his trade policies are constitutional.
Trump made the declaration on Truth Social early Sunday morning, praising his economic record and mocking critics of his tariffs.
“People that are against Tariffs are FOOLS! We are now the Richest, Most Respected Country In the World, With Almost No Inflation, and A Record Stock Market Price. 401k’s are Highest EVER. We are taking in Trillions of Dollars and will soon begin paying down our ENORMOUS DEBT, $37 Trillion. Record Investment in the USA, plants and factories going up all over the place. A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone.”
According to Fox Business, tariff revenues have surged since Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs in April, climbing from $23.9 billion in May to nearly $29 billion by July. Total duties reached $215.2 billion for fiscal year 2025, with another $35.9 billion collected so far in fiscal 2026. Trump claimed the tariffs are driving record manufacturing investment and helping the country begin paying down its debt, now estimated at more than $38 trillion.
The proposal arrives as the Supreme Court weighs whether Trump had the authority to impose broad tariffs under emergency powers. Axios reported that justices appeared skeptical, questioning whether tariffs intended to raise revenue could qualify as an emergency measure.
“They appeared concerned that tariffs effectively acted as a revenue-raising tax, as opposed to a mechanism to solve any emergency caused by a trade imbalance.”
If the Court rules against the administration, the government could be forced to refund over $100 billion to importers.
Still, Trump’s allies insist the tariffs are both legal and economically sound. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told ABC’s This Week that the U.S. expects to collect $500 billion or more annually, calling it a “dividend from American strength.”
For now, Trump’s $2,000 “tariff dividend” sits somewhere between a stimulus check and a tax credit, with the details still unclear. Whether the plan becomes a populist windfall or a legal casualty will depend on how the Supreme Court rules in the weeks ahead.
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Comments
After Roberts Obama care is a tax
You can’t trust the SC and from what I heard, Gorsuch was very negative as was sweet traitorous amy
Isn’t giving money away during covid a driver of inflation enough?
How about paying off the national debt instead?
Give everyone $2000 and guess what, your next oil
Change will be amazingly $2000, or that Dentist checkup will be $2000. $2000 becomes next to worthless if everyone has $2000.
Umm, that’s not how inflation works. Inflation is about money supply and doesn’t increase by a set amount based on some bonus. I’d rather this money go to the debt, but prices won’t jump $2K just because of some bonus,
If he borrows the money he pays out, then it’s not inflationary. It just increases the debt though.
No way you can pay off the debt. It’s too big. What you can do is balance the budget or create or surplus so as to not add to the debt or pay it down slightly.
You can’t pay down the debt without balancing the budget, and there are no signs that that is even possible. That means deficit zero instead of three trillion or whatever it is now.
In addition this idiot is going to pay out money instead of reducing the deficit from even its current insane level.
This idiot…
Ahh, you finally came out for all to see
This is one of two things of what I said he should do with tariff money. Happy to see him thinking this way.
That money should eIther be given back to the people essentially just cutting the money from the import abusers or use it to invest in US manufacturing and services lowering their prices to be more price competitive with foreign interlopers.
Oh and by the by, this should be paid to TAXPAYERS ONLY
Trumpbux “stimulus” checks were socialist stupidity during Covid and are just as socialist and just as stupid now.
Do you not see the difference? Tariff prices are passed onto consumers. This is simply a rebate.
Seriously? By that “logic” TrumpBux Covid stimulus were refunds for income taxes.
If tariffs are too high then the appropriate thing to do is to lower the tariffs so there isn’t enough for a “rebate” and refund the existing tariff payers NOT spread it around the general public.
Perhaps this is just a clever way to pressure SCOTUS. Democrats aren’t the only people who can call out the Gibsme Street Army.
Instead of buying people off how about voting to keep spending level and put all tariff revenue against the debt?
Agreed. How about just going back to pre Covid spending levels as the top line budget number? In 2019 we spent a bit over $4.4 Trillion on revenue of $3.5 Trillion for a deficit of approx $900+ Billion. In 2024 we spent $6.75 Trillion on revenue of $4.92 Trillion for a deficit of $1.83 Trillion.
The problem with reducing Federal spending is that almost everyone wants ‘their’ spending to continue. That’s also why we can’t get a simple flat tax at average % of 18% which is basically the rate of overall taxes collected. The folks who get home mortgage deduction or tax free healthcare benefits from employer or the many subsidies, credits and other deductions have pressure group constituencies and powerful lobbyists to stop real tax reform.
The Trump admin needs to do a.better job of communication on economic issues. Offer reforms and alternatives. Explain why housing prices are high; immigrants taking up housing stock, NIMBY zoning, Cray Cray rent control among others. Something like 35% of homeowners don’t have a mortgage, another 30% have low interest rate mortgage under 4% and they ain’t gonna sell on a whim just to pay a far higher interest rate on a different home.
“Americans?” What does that mean?…. because snap/ebt is for Americans and look at what we have learned about those recipients.
It is just too screwed up at the moment, and even though I would love a little money,,, it isn’t the right time.
I’d be game for half towards debt and half as dividend checks.
In this scenario the dividend check portion- I can stomach it- because the common consumer had to eat the price gouging on tarriffs. Our heat pump went and the prices magically increased… and I’m pretty sure a lot of it was on stuff not from China.
How about if you are on any government assistance or did not pay taxes last year you don’t get squat.
Much as I think Trump stood head and shoulders higher than any of the people against whom he ran (admittedly, a low bar), this statement is one that I will believe when I open the mailbox and find the Treasury check.
Right. I give this one about as much chance as California’s $1M/person reparations.
Even the only one that happened was a big lie. Joe Biden promised during his campaign to deliver $2,000 stimulus checks to every American if Democrats won the Senate, specifically referencing this figure in events surrounding the Georgia runoff elections. However, after being elected, his administration clarified that the new stimulus would be only $1,400 per person, as Americans had already received $600 checks under the Trump administration’s December relief package.