House Speaker Mike Johnson said President Donald Trump’s proposed $5,000 payment to every American adult would require action by Congress, while calling the proposal a “creative idea” whose details still need to be worked out.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom.
House Speaker Mike Johnson said Sunday that Congress would have to approve President Donald Trump’s proposed $5,000 “dividend” for American adults, making clear that the president could not implement the plan without lawmakers acting.
During an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union”, anchor Jake Tapper asked Johnson about Trump’s proposal to provide the payment if Republicans retain control of both the House and Senate after the November midterm elections.
“President Trump is proposing to pay every American adult $5,000, but only if Republicans keep control of the House and the Senate,” Tapper said. “For that $5,000 check, doesn’t the president need Congress to act? And are you going to carry out his wishes?”
“I would assume, yes, he’d need Congress to act,” Johnson responded.
Trump unveiled the proposal during the Republican Midterm Convention in Dallas, promising a $5,000 payment to every adult U.S. citizen if Republicans maintain their congressional majorities. The president has described the payment as a dividend resulting from what he says is the country’s increased economic strength.
Johnson said the concept generated enthusiasm at the convention but acknowledged that lawmakers would have to determine how such a program would work.
“And that’s a creative idea. He launched it at our convention and got a lot of people excited,” Johnson said. “Of course, devil’s in the details. We have to figure all that out.”
The speaker then connected Trump’s proposal to Republicans’ economic message heading into the midterm elections.
“But I think what he was articulating there is that he’s saying that if you want more money in your pocket, you have to keep Republicans in charge,” Johnson said.
“Why? Because we’re talking about the record of achievement. Look at what we’ve done since President Trump took over. Republicans have had control of the House and Senate.”
Johnson pointed to tax policy enacted under Republican control as evidence for that argument.
“We have the largest working and middle class tax cut in U.S. history,” Johnson said. “The average taxpayer in my home state of Louisiana, where I’m sitting this morning, has more than $2,900 in their pocket they didn’t have to send to Washington because of our policies.”
“They also have an additional take home pay an average of $8,000 per filer. By the way, 97% of tax filers got a tax cut this year.”
Trump reiterated the $5,000 proposal Sunday while in Ireland, saying he believed the federal government could accommodate the payments within the budget because of increased revenue. The proposal has not yet been accompanied by legislation detailing eligibility, funding or how the payments would be administered.
Estimates cited in reporting on the proposal indicate that payments to every American adult could cost more than $1 trillion, depending on eligibility requirements. Johnson’s comments underscored that any final program would have to move through the legislative process before payments could be authorized.
For now, the $5,000 dividend remains a proposal tied by Trump to Republican control of Congress after the midterms, with Johnson confirming that lawmakers would ultimately have to approve it before the federal government could issue the checks.
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