Trump pledges $5,000 payments to supporters, House speaker says congressional approval required

President Donald Trump told reporters at a midterm convention in Dallas that he would provide a $5,000 payment to supporters who help keep the Republican Party in control of Congress, calling the payout a “Trump Dividend.” He later told CBS News Texas that he did not expect Congress to have to authorize the payments, though he offered no details on how the funding would be secured without legislative approval.

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said the proposal would require congressional action. “I would assume, yes, he’d need Congress to act, and that’s a creative idea,” Johnson told reporters. He added that he would work to move the plan through the House despite the party’s narrow margin, saying, “He’s the big-idea president. We’re going to try to implement everything we can.”

Trump reiterated his commitment while boarding Air Force One in Ireland, stating, “The 5,000’s going to happen, 100%,” and later describing the payments as “easy enough” because of a strong economy. He claimed, “We can easily handle that because we’re taking in so much money. We’ve never done better,” and affirmed, “I made the pledge. I always keep my pledge.”

Analysts note that the proposal could exceed $1 trillion and would add pressure to the nation’s roughly $1.8 trillion annual budget deficit, raising concerns about inflation and interest-rate pressures. A recent poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that only about one-third of U.S. adults approve of Trump’s handling of the presidency, with lower approval on economic and immigration issues.