Trump’s US$5,000 midterm pledge faces legal and funding questions
The proposed payment to every American adult would cost an estimated US$1.3 trillion and require congressional approval.
US President Donald Trump has proposed paying US$5,000 to every American adult if Republicans win November’s midterm elections, but the pledge has no confirmed funding mechanism and has not been approved.
The BBC reported that nearly 270 million American adults would be eligible under the proposal, putting its estimated cost at about US$1.3 trillion. Trump has also said the money would have to be spent in the United States, although there are no details on how that condition would be monitored.
Vice-President JD Vance suggested tariff revenue could fund the payments. However, the US has collected about US$475 billion in tariff and excise revenue since the beginning of 2025, while more than US$100 billion was later refunded after the Supreme Court struck down many tariffs.
Congress authorises federal spending, and Trump has not said whether he would seek legislative approval. Legal experts told the BBC that an executive order alone would be unlikely to authorise spending on that scale. Erica York of the Tax Foundation said she would be “extremely surprised” if Congress approved the proposal.
The legality of linking the payment to an election result is also contested. Some experts said it could resemble a lawful campaign promise to cut taxes, while others described it as a more transactional offer that could raise concerns under laws prohibiting payments intended to influence voting. Trump previously proposed US$2,000 tariff-funded cheques, but those payments were not introduced.
