Trump Promises $5,000 Checks To Every American Adult If Republicans Keep Congress

President Donald Trump told a Republican crowd in Dallas on Wednesday that every adult American citizen would receive a $5,000 payment if Republicans hold both chambers of Congress after the November midterms.

“If the Republicans win, you win with us and you get $5,000,” Trump said at the Republican Midterm Convention. “It will be called the Trump dividend.”

The promise is conditional on Republicans keeping control of both the Senate and the House. Trump did not say how the payments would be funded, and no legislation authorizing them has been introduced.

Not the first check promised

Trump has floated similar payments before. He previously promised a $2,000 “tariff dividend” and a $1,776 “warrior dividend” for military members. Neither has been paid.

Legal experts raise vote-buying questions

Within hours of the announcement, election law specialists questioned whether the pledge runs afoul of federal law. Under 18 U.S.C. § 597, it is a federal crime to offer money in exchange for votes — an offense that applies both to the person offering and the person accepting.

Analysts quoted by Newsweek and Raw Story said the promise could face legal challenges, though no case has been filed. Whether a campaign promise of a future government payment counts as an “offer” under the statute is untested; courts have generally treated promises of official government action differently from cash handed to individual voters.

What it means here

Louisiana voters go to the polls November 3 with a U.S. Senate seat and all of the state’s U.S. House seats on the ballot. Sen. Bill Cassidy is seeking a third term.

For a two-adult household on the Northshore, the promise would amount to $10,000 — but only if Republicans hold Congress, and only if the payments are ever authorized and funded by Congress.

The Rabbit Hole will follow whether any legislation is introduced.