President Donald Trump has faced accusations of bribery and vote-buying online after proposing $5,000 dividend checks for American adults contingent on a Republican win in the midterms. He made the comments during a speech at the RNC convention in Dallas, Texas.
“I will give $5,000 to every adult if we win,” Trump said and the excerpt of his speech was shared widely online.
One page sharing the video wrote “Trump attempts to bribe people to vote for Republicans in the midterms.”
Trump’s pledge of $5,000 checks has triggered a backlash, with several critics swiftly arguing that he was essentially offering money in exchange for votes ahead of the midterms.
“Today Trump tried to buy the midterms by offering all voters a $5,000 bribe in exchange for their votes, provided they spend the cash in the U.S. Since the Fed will have to print the money, the result would be massive inflation, well in excess of anything experienced under Biden,” American stockbroker Peter Schiff noted.
Another said “lol. trump openly bribing people to vote for republicans. $5k per person if republicans hold the house and the senate?”.
Yet another criticized the president, stating “That’s $2 trillion of taxpayers’ money in freebies – the Venezuela model. In a real democracy, this is vote-buying, and he would be banned from contesting.”
What to know about Trump dividend?
Trump said the $5,000 payment would be known as the “Trump dividend”. “Now all we have to do is win,” he added. According to Bloomberg, the proposal could cost the US government well over $1 trillion.
However, Trump did not explain how the payments would be distributed or financed. Any such cash payments would require approval from Congress. The announcement comes as the country’s large fiscal deficit is already contributing to higher borrowing costs. Trump said the money would have to be spent within the US, but did not provide details on how compliance with the condition would be ensured.
Fox News also questioned Vice President JD Vance over Trump’s promise. “Trump’s $5,000 dividend would cost $1.3 trillion. People are saying Trump is trying to bribe voters,” Bret Baier said. The video of his remarks has since gone viral online.
