Market Update: Are we getting a $2,000 stimulus check? Here’s what Trump said – Full Analysis

President Donald Trump recently claimed that those $2,000 stimulus checks could be sent to Americans “toward the end of the year” using revenue from tariffs, stating he would not need congressional approval to do so, according to an interview with The New York Times.

Since returning to office, Trump has repeatedly said he wants to pay out $2,000 stimulus checks, though the idea has not been formally proposed to Congress. During a Cabinet meeting last month, Trump outlined additional ideas for distributing some of that revenue as payments to Americans beginning in 2026.

“Next year is projected to be the largest tax refund season ever, and we’re going to be giving back refunds out of the tariffs, as we have taken in literally trillions of dollars,” Trump said in 2025. “We’re going to be giving a nice dividend to the people in addition to reducing debt.”

On Dec. 18, Trump addressed the nation and announced plans to send one-time payments of $1,776 to U.S. military service members, which he referred to as a “warrior dividend.” The Defense Department funded those payments, according to the Pentagon, and they were sent to about 1.45 million service members before Christmas.

However, for Americans to receive any new stimulus payment, a formal legislative process would have to take place and there is no guarantee Congress would approve such checks.

Despite Trump’s claim, any form of stimulus payment issued by the U.S. government must be approved by Congress.

On Dec. 21, during an interview with CBS News’ “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said stimulus checks remain a possibility for 2026. 

“The deficit relative to last year is down by $600 billion and so, in the summer, I wasn’t so sure that there was space for a check like that. But now I’m pretty sure that there is, and so, I would expect that in the new year, the president will bring forth a proposal to Congress to make that happen,” said Hassett. 

Hassett added that tariff revenue would be only one potential funding source, noting that Congress ultimately decides how federal revenue — including taxes and tariffs — is spent through the appropriations process, according to remarks reported by USA TODAY.

There has been no official announcement or legislative action indicating that a stimulus check will be issued in January.

Plans for tariff-funded checks could also be derailed if the Supreme Court strikes down some of Trump’s tariffs. During Nov. 5 oral arguments, justices raised questions about the scope of the president’s authority to impose certain tariffs.

Lawmakers have also introduced the American Worker Rebate Act of 2025, proposed by Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Missouri, which would distribute tariff rebate checks funded by tariff revenue of at least $600 per person, up to $2,400 for a family of four. The bill has not advanced in Congress.

Last year, Trump said he weighed a proposal to send taxpayers a $5,000 check, funded by savings from the Department of Government Efficiency and framed as a dividend.

“There’s even a — under consideration, a new concept where we give 20% of the DOGE savings to American citizens and 20% goes to paying down debt,” Trump said at the FII Priority Summit in Miami in 2025. 

However, the proposed DOGE checks have not moved forward and are no longer being pursued. Elon Musk, who led the DOGE initiative as a special government agent, stepped down at the end of May 2025, after earlier casting doubt on whether the checks were feasible and noting that Congress and the president would have final say.