Fox News’ Laura Ingraham Puts Trump on Spot Over Promised $5K Checks

Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham challenged President Donald Trump on his promise to send $5,000 checks to every adult American if Republicans keep control of the Senate and the House in the November midterms.

Trump made the pledge during the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, on Wednesday (September 9). “If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the United States Senate, because of our tremendous economic success, like, in history we’ve never had anything like what’s happening, but because of our tremendous strength and success economically, I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000,” he said.

Ingraham sat down with the president for an interview that aired on Fox News on Thursday night (September 10), during which she asked about the $5,000 promise. “The obvious response to that is, we’re $40 trillion in debt; how is that financially responsible or even doable?” she asked.

Before answering, Trump reiterated his caveat: the $5,000 has to be spent in the United States. “We can’t go out and buy things from Germany or, frankly, Canada, or any other place,” he explained. “Therefore, it just gets flowed right into the system.”

While Trump continued to claim the U.S. economy is growing at a “faster rate” than ever before, Ingraham noted that some have criticized his $5,000 promise as an attempt to “buy the election.”

“So why not just give the money now? If you have the money, why not give it now?” she asked the president.

Related

Fox News' Jacqui Heinrich Questions Trump's $5,000 Midterms Promise

“Because the Democrats can’t do it. Because for them, it’s negative growth,” Trump responded, not quite answering the question. “With us, it’s so positive. So, we’re taking in $21 trillion. No country has ever taken in anywhere near that. It’s four or five times higher than the next one. All because of the beautiful word you and I love more than most others: tariffs.”

While Trump did not explain how he plans to issue these payments, his response suggested he’d fund the initiative with revenue from his controversial tariffs. However, critics have noted that the billions made from the tariffs would not be enough to fund a $1.3 trillion payout.

Some questioned the legality of the president’s pledge, noting that it would require congressional approval. Meanwhile, others pointed to previous promises Trump never delivered on, like the $2,000 rebates under his tariff policy and the $5,000 checks from savings claimed by the now-defunct Department of Government Efficiency.