In Trump’s world, anyone who can’t be intimidated can be bought. As a result, he loves promising taxpayers large checks with his name on them. You will recall that he was screaming for stimulus just before the 2020 election. He suggested that Americans would get a share of the supposedly massive savings generated by DOGE. He talked about sending checks to compensate for tariffs. Last night, he promised a “Trump Dividend” of $5,000 per adult citizen if the GOP maintains control of both houses of Congress. Should we take this latest promise seriously?
No, for two reasons. First of all, cutting revenues by over $1 trillion at a time when the deficit, interest rates, and inflation are unacceptably high is not exactly a great idea. Second, no one was watching his speech last night except the people in the room, so the average American voter isn’t going to be moved by it.
Oh, darn.