E-Paper
Will every American qualify for $2,000 tariff dividend? Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent shares details
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent revealed that the Trump administration has talked about restricting the proposed $2,000 tariff dividend to certain families.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has revealed that the Trump administration has talked about restricting the proposed $2,000 tariff dividend to families that make less than six figures. This comes shortly after President Donald Trump shared in a Truth Social post that he will send “at least $2000” directly to Americans using tariff revenue. He promised to reward taxpayers and pay off the United States’ national debt as his tariff policy faces a challenge at the Supreme Court.
Read More | US Supreme Court sceptical of Trump tariffs: What can the US president do?
“Well, there are a lot of options here that the president’s talking about a $2,000 rebate and those — that would be for families making less than, say, $100,000,” Bessent told ‘Fox & Friends’ Wednesday, November 12.
On being asked if the Trump administration decided on that limit, Bessent said, “We haven’t. It’s in discussion.”
Donald Trump's $2,000 dividend announcement
Trump recently wrote about his $2,000 dividend plan, but did not elaborate on how it would work. “People that are against Tariffs are FOOLS!” Trump wrote in the Truth Social post. “We are now the Richest, Most Respected Country In the World, With Almost No Inflation, and A Record Stock Market Price. 401k’s are Highest EVER.”
He added, “We are taking in Trillions of Dollars and will soon begin paying down our ENORMOUS DEBT, $37 Trillion. Record Investment in the USA, plants and factories going up all over the place. A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone”.
Read More | $2000 stimulus checks coming in November 2025? What Trump said about tariff dividend payment
Bessent also told ABC’s ‘This Week’ that the dividend “could come in lots of forms” and that it “could be just the tax decreases that we are seeing.” This was a reference to tax cuts including in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law this year.
On Wednesday, Bessent reiterated that “what we did with the tax bill is actually financing the president’s no tax and tips, overtime, Social Security, and the big refunds you’re going to see are a result of that.”
The tariff dividend was discussed amid voter concerns about affordability. “We inherited this affordability mess. It was the worst inflation, 40, 50 years,” Bessent said. “Imagine two lines. There is the inflation line; we’ve got that under control. It’s leveled out. That is going to start turning down.”
He added, “And there’s the income line, which under Biden, because so many of the jobs were government jobs, you can’t get real wage growth from a government job, real wages are going to increase.”
