Trump makes big promise to give American adults $5,000 'dividend' – but only on single condition

Donald Trump has vowed to give a $5,000 'dividend' to every American adult if Republicans hold both chambers of Congress later this year.

Speaking at the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas on September 9, he told more than 21,000 attendees: "If the Republicans win, you win with us, and you get $5,000. It will be called the Trump Dividend."

The US president likened the rather generous pledge to a big business' distributions to shareholders, citing the country's' 'tremendous strength and success economically.'

However, residents would need to spend the $5,000 within the US to ensure the money is pumped back into the American economy.

The pledge would cost the US $1.3 trillion (Photo by SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images)

"We don't want you going to Canada to spend the money," Trump said, as per the BBC. "We don't want you going to China, to Germany. You got to spend the money in the United States of America."

It would cost a whopping $1.3 trillion to fulfil the pledge, which appears to show Trump's desperation to boost the Republican chances following low approval ratings.

While he offered no explanation as to where the funding for such a scheme would come from, Vice President JD Vance suggested using the revenue generated by using tariffs.

"What the president is talking about is fundamentally a dividend for American workers," he told Fox News.

"We're taking in an extraordinary amount of revenue because the president of the United States is actually standing up to both foreign companies but also foreign countries who've been taking advantage of America's workers. I don't think it's a controversial idea."

Federal law prohibits payments intended to influence voting (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

As the data has proven that the Republicans historically perform better when Trump's name is on the ballet, the POTUS asked party members to 'pretend' it would be this coming November in the midterm elections.

In response to the 'Trump dividend,' the Democrats branded it an 'empty promise,' while others have questioned whether such an agreement would even be legal.

Federal laws in the US prohibit payments which are intended to influence voting — an issue which was highlighted during 2024, when billionaire Elon Musk offered to pay voters in several swing states if they signed a certain petition.

If it were to go ahead, the pledge would certainly be the first time a US president has ever offered such a payout, particularly in the context of earning votes.

However, it isn't the first to be promised. At the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Democrats in Georgia promised a $2,000 relief payment if their party took control of the Senate.