As U.S. President Donald Trump has promised to pay $5,000 (about 6.7 million won) per adult citizen if Republicans win the November midterms, even his close aides are offering differing explanations on how to secure the astronomical funding.
On the 11th (local time), President Trump wrote on the social media (SNS) platform Truth Social, "When I say something, I mean it. The $5,000 dividends will happen because Americans are entitled to them," urging people to "vote Republican."
Trump also presented the pledge to pay "$5,000 per adult citizen" twice at the Republican National Convention held in Dallas, Texas, on the 9th and 10th.
But he did not disclose specific funding plans. Paying $5,000 to about 240 million U.S. adult citizens would require about $1.2 trillion. That is roughly equal to one year of interest costs on the U.S. federal government liability, which recently topped $40 trillion.
Trump's close aides have also put forward varying funding ideas.
Commerce Minister Howard Lutnick cited the so-called "Trump Platinum Card" as a funding candidate in an NBC interview. The idea would allow wealthy individuals to pay $5 million per person to obtain the card, and in return they could stay in the United States for up to 270 days without paying U.S. taxes on income earned outside the country.
Minister Lutnick said, "There are more than 100,000 people on the waiting list who want to come to the United States (under the tax-exemption condition)," adding that if 100,000 people participate at $5 million each, "$500 billion" could be raised.
The Platinum Card is being reviewed as a follow-up to the "Gold Card," which grants U.S. permanent residency if you pay $1 million per person. Minister Lutnick expected last year that the Gold Card alone could generate $1 trillion in revenue, but issuance so far is reportedly sluggish.
Minister Lutnick said, "That money (the Trump dividends) will not come from taxpayer funds," and also mentioned the government's Intel equity as a funding option.
He said, "We secured about 500 million shares (of Intel stock). The share price was $20, and now it is $100. So we made a $50 billion profit." However, that is a book gain, not realized revenue from selling the shares.
Trump himself also cited tariff receipts as a funding source in a Fox News interview the previous day. He said, "We are making money. The same goes for TikTok," adding, "We collected a fee. I got a fee for our country. $10 billion from Intel."
Vice President JD Vance also said on Fox News that tariff receipts could be used as funding for the dividends. But critics note tariff receipts are around $200 billion a year, and refunds to corporations are being made, so they fall short of covering the full $1.2 trillion needed.
Kevin Hassett, Chairperson of the White House National Economic Council, floated another option. In a Bloomberg TV interview that day, he said, "One way to make this (dividends) happen is to use the budget reconciliation process," calling it "one path currently under consideration."
Budget reconciliation is a system in the Senate that allows budget-related bills to pass with a simple majority, bypassing a filibuster. In that it requires congressional procedure, it differs from President Trump's earlier remark that "Congressional approval is not needed."
Chairperson Hassett stressed, "That (funding for the dividends) is something to negotiate with Congress," adding, "This is a serious proposal. Do not underestimate President Trump."
The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) criticized the pledge as "blatant vote-buying."
◇ WSJ: "Trump, blatant vote-buying"
In an editorial on the 10th, the WSJ said, "President Trump has a particular knack for laying bare the cynical qualities of modern politics," and called the pledge a quintessential "Trumpian example."
It continued, "Trump's cynical genius is that he exposes this political vote-buying without any packaging, in a naked way," adding, "It's like, 'Vote for my party. Then you get a check.'"
It also called the funding size, which reaches about $1.2 trillion, "a preposterous sum." Still, it predicted that if Republicans maintain their majority in Congress, they could face political pressure to implement the pledge in a reduced form.
The WSJ also mocked Trump's mention of tariff receipts as a funding source, saying tariffs are actually increasing voters' economic burdens and that "if tariffs were repealed, the country could receive an economic 'dividend' without spending a penny."