Senate Republicans are balking at President Donald Trump’s plan to send $2,000 tariff dividend checks to Americans, citing concerns over its impact on the national debt.
A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll reported that Trump's approval rating was 38 percent, the lowest since his return to office. Respondents to that poll cited the economy and soaring cost of living among their top reasons for discontent with the president.
Trump's plan to send Americans $2,000 would theoretically help ease some of the financial burden caused by inflation and his own tariffs.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he'd prefer to see the revenue from the tariffs be used to pay down the nation's debt, which has soared to $38 trillion.
“I’ve ... heard suggestions that [the Trump administration] would apply any tariff revenue to debt repayment, which I think is a really good idea. So, we’ll look forward and await any suggestions they might have,” Thune said, according to The Hill.
Thune said paying down the national debt would also help prevent further inflation for American consumers. JPMorgan Chase issued a projection recently predicting that the U.S. would have to increase inflation in order to pay down its debt.
“The amount of revenue coming in from the tariffs is considered to be substantial at this point and hopefully can be put to a useful purpose, in my view, one of which would be repaying the debt," Thune said.
The U.S. Treasury Department issued a report in July saying it had already collected $136 billion in revenues from Trump's tariffs, and projected that it could collect up to $300 billion this year alone. The Congressional Budget Office predicted that, should the current tariffs remain in place, the U.S. government could collect approximately $2.8 trillion over 10 years.
Senate Republican Policy Committee Chair Shelley Moore Capito told reporters she largely agreed with Thune, but wants to see a more substantive proposal from the Trump administration outlining the $2,000 check plan.
“I think we need to have a more fleshed-out plan. Does it go to everybody?” she said. “I think my preferred route, quite honestly, would be to pay down the debt, but I want to hear out his program.
Republican Senator James Lankford said he was in league with those who want the money to go toward paying down the national debt.
“Any income that’s coming in from anywhere is reducing the deficit at this point,” he said, adding that any dividend paid out to Americans from the tariff would add to the debt.
Other Republicans have backed Trump's idea. Senator Josh Hawley has introduced the American Worker Rebate Act, which would provide checks to workers and families through direct payments akin to the pandemic-era payouts.
His plan would see checks of at least $600 sent to some Americans, and up to $2,400 sent to families of four.
“Americans deserve a tax rebate after four years of Biden policies that have devastated families’ savings and livelihoods,” Hawley said while introducing his bill. “My legislation would allow hard-working Americans to benefit from the wealth that Trump’s tariffs are returning to this country.”
Trump's proposal for $2,000 checks to most Americans is expected to cost the Treasury $600 billion per year, even if it excludes "high-income people," according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan watchdog group.
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