Trump $2,000 check update: Proposal gets boost from top economic official
A top economic adviser within the Trump administration said there is enough tariff revenue to cover the $2,000 checks that President Donald Trump has proposed handing out to Americans.
“It’s something that will require legislation but if you look at how much tariff revenue has been coming in, then there would actually be enough room to cover those checks and not go into the rest of the budget,” Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, said while speaking to reporters on Thursday.
Newsweek contacted the White House and Treasury Department via email on Friday.
Why It Matters
As tariffs often end up raising prices for everyday Americans, the $2,000 dividends could be a welcome relief to many low to moderate income Americans who have experienced inflation.
While Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent have been in talks over the dividends courtesy of tariff revenue, Congressional approval would be needed to get the money into the hands of the American people.
Hassett’s comments are the most concrete endorsement yet from a senior economic official that Trump’s proposed $2,000 tariff dividend could be financially feasible. This is in spite of independent analysts casting doubt on whether the amount of money that has been generated by tariffs could cover the checks.
What To Know
Trump has said that the checks would go to middle-income people and lower-income people, and not high earners, though he did not clarify the thresholds of who would qualify within these brackets.
So far, Trump’s proposal has remained entirely theoretical, with no formal steps taken to advance it.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Hassett said that disbursing these checks would require legislation.
When asked by a reporter whether he was working with Congress to progress such legislation, Hassett said: “We’re actively studying the matter and getting the numbers straight, so the president has all the choices he needs to decide what to do.”
The government raised $195 billion in customs duties through the fiscal year 2025, according to data from the Treasury Department. The number, while more than 250 percent greater than what was collected in the previous fiscal year, is lower than the “trillions” the president has claimed his tariffs have already generated.
Erica York, the Tax Foundation’s vice president of federal tax policy, previously noted in a social media post that even after excluding high-income earners, which she classed as people earning over $100,000, the proposed $2,000 tariff dividends would cost nearly $300 billion, more than what the tariffs have so far generated.
What People Are Saying
President Donald Trump told reporters on Monday: “We’re going to issue a dividend to our middle-income people and lower-income people, about $2,000. And we’re going to use the remaining tariffs to lower our debt.”
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told ABC News on November 9: “I haven’t spoken to the president about this yet, but the $2,000 dividend could come in lots of forms,” adding: “It could be just the tax decreases that we are seeing on the president’s agenda. You know, no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax on Social Security, deductibility of auto loans.”
Michael Ryan, a finance expert and the founder of MichaelRyanMoney.com, previously told Newsweek: “Tariffs are essentially a tax Americans pay at the checkout counter. So while a $2,000 check might sound good, tariffs on imports drive up prices on everything from groceries to clothes. Part of that ‘dividend’ gets clawed back through higher costs.”
Kevin Thompson, the CEO of 9i Capital Group and the host of the 9innings podcast, told Newsweek: “A lot of people are assuming this will look like the pandemic-era stimulus, but I don’t see that as being the case.
“If anything does pass, it will be symbolic. Hard checks aren’t happening. That goes directly against the Republican agenda of debt reduction, and they’re not going to reverse that stance with a new round of payments. Long term, this isn’t another COVID-style injection of cash into the economy. It’s more of a policy adjustment than a true stimulus.”
What Happens Next?
For Trump’s plan to proceed, it would need to be approved by Congress. Meanwhile, the legality of the president’s tariff policies will be decided by the Supreme Court. If the justices rule against the tariffs, this would further undermine Trump’s ability to issue the checks.
