President Donald Trump has claimed checks are “on the way” to military service members for a Christmas “warrior dividend” of $1,776.
Trump made the promise during his national address on prime time TV Wednesday night, where he touched on all his familiar talking points, including blaming his predecessor Joe Biden for inheriting a “mess” of an economy.
The president touted how under his leadership, the U.S. is the “hottest country anywhere in the world,” despite many Americans struggling to pay for expenses such as housing, groceries and healthcare.
He then announced that more than 1,450,000 military service members will receive a “warrior dividend before Christmas.”
“In honor of our nation's founding in 1776, we are sending every soldier $1,776 and the checks are already on the way,” Trump said, adding, “Nobody understood that one until about 30 minutes ago.”
The White House clarified who in the military will receive a check: “Active-duty Service members in the pay grades of 0-6 and below and on active duty as of November 30, 2025, as well as reserve component members on active-duty orders of 31 days or more as of November 30, 2025.”
The estimated total cost of the checks is nearly $2.6 billion. It’s unclear how these dividends will be funded. Congress has the power of the purse, meaning federal spending cannot be allocated without its approval.
Trump credited tariffs for bringing money in for the country but he didn’t say directly how the military checks would be funded.
Earlier in his speech, Trump said he’s “secured a record breaking $18 trillion of investment into the United States…much of this success has been accomplished by tariffs.”
CNN fact-checker Daniel Dale, wrote on X that Trump “hasn't secured anything close to $18 trillion in investment.”
After announcing the “warrior dividend” Trump said, “We made a lot more money than anybody thought because of tariffs…nobody deserves it more than our military, and I say congratulations to everybody.”
The Independent has reached out to the White House for comment.
Trump has already promised to send $2,000 checks to Americans next year using tariff revenue.
The president previously secured $130 million to pay service members’ salaries during the lengthy government shutdown in the fall through a private donation.
Trump said at a roundtable in October that his “friend” called him to say he wanted to contribute money “if there's a shortfall.”
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