Trump promises $5,000 to Americans if Republicans win midterms, but his ex-chief of staff says it can’t be done ‘legally’

On Wednesday, during the Republican Party’s midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, Trump promised to give $5,000 to every American if Republicans won the Senate and House in the upcoming midterm elections. While the audience erupted in loud cheers, hours later some people ran the numbers and found the promise “legally” unachievable.

One of them is Trump’s former Chief of Staff, Mick Mulvaney, who, during a recent Fox Business interview, said, “I don’t think it’s going to happen,” when asked to comment on Trump’s pledge. Mulvaney said that, based on his calculations, the Trump administration would have to shell out $1.3 trillion to follow through on the commitment.

“The math I ran was about $1.3 trillion. I’m not sure how they would do it legally. You can’t spend money unless Congress appropriates it,” Mulvaney said. Alternatively, Mulvaney briefly suggested a possible path, saying “tariff revenues, maybe,” but noted that this method would raise only about $300 billion, which isn’t enough given the calculations. He also said that, in the rare chance Trump did go ahead with this method, it would be “inflationary” for the economy.

As Mulvaney continued to speak, he doubled down on his assertions, saying, “I mean, we’ve heard about these Trump dividend checks since he came in office in the second term. I’m not sure what the administration is doing.” He continued, “ I’m not sure what the campaign is doing. In fairness, I think it shows weakness.”

JD Vance later clarified where the money would come from

As discussions surrounding Trump’s Wednesday statements grew, Vice President JD Vance offered some clarification on the matter. According to an article published by WBAL TV, Vance said the money Trump promised would go only to those who weren’t wealthy.

The article also reported that Vance said the money would be paid primarily through revenue the government raised through Trump’s stringent tariff policies. With that in mind, the article noted that even if the administration tapped the tariff fund, the amount is too large to cover, especially since the nation is already trillions in debt.

A April 2025 report from the Bipartisan Policy Center highlighted that, as of September that year, the United States collected $211 billion in revenue from “gross tariffs and certain excise taxes.” Given that Trump’s tariff policies became more aggressive after this period, it’s likely they produced a substantial amount, but whether that exceeds a trillion dollars (excluding the selection criteria Vance mentioned) remains uncertain.

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