BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) \u2014 President Trump is continuing to float the idea of giving $2,000 tariff dividend to taxpayers excluding what the president called \u201chigh income\u201d individuals.<\/p>\n
In a Truth Social post Monday morning, the president continued the push for the checks saying in part, \u201cAll money left over from the $2,000 payments made to low-and middle-income USA Citizens, from the massive tariff income pouring into our country from foreign countries\u2026will be used to substantially pay down national debt.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s good. You know, like the low-income people, you know, anything better than nothing. Immediately, I guess it\u2019s okay. Later on, in like the grand scheme of things, how the tariffs are going to impact the economy. I\u2019m not sure about that,\u201d said Bakersfield resident, Jaime Pacheco.<\/p>\n
Trump has implemented tariffs on nearly 100 countries citing that it would help bolster the United States economy.<\/p>\n
According to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, the United States has collected $195 billion from the tariffs Trump has implement as well as some that were in place before he came into office.<\/p>\n
If the president wanted to provide a $2,000 check to every American who filed for a tax return in 2024, the tariffs would need to have generated $326 billion.<\/p>\n
Pacheco has concerns about the impact on the economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you like to look at it in a broader sense, like when you were pretty much recycling the money from like the tariff is doing a little bit more harm than good when you look at it,\u201d said Pacheco.<\/p>\n
Bakersfield resident, Marlene Smith, thinks the checks can go a long way.<\/p>\n
\u201cSome people are really in a crunch right now with utilities and ongoing bills and some of that is piling up, so it\u2019s helping them get out of debt a little bit. So, I think it\u2019ll be a good idea,\u201d said Smith.<\/p>\n
On \u201cThis Week with George Stephanopoulos\u201d, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent was asked how feasible the stimulus checks might be.<\/p>\n
\u201cI haven\u2019t spoken to the president about this yet, but you know, it could, the $2,000 dividend, could come in lots of forms and lots of ways, said the secretary. \u201cIt could be just the tax decreases that we are seeing on the president\u2019s agenda. You know, no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax and Social Security deductibility of auto loans.\u201d<\/p>\n
President Trump is unlikely to be able to enact these checks via an executive order. He would need approval from both chambers of congress in order for the payments to take effect.<\/p>\n
The last time American\u2019s received checks from the federal government was back in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That package received overwhelming bipartisan support.<\/p>\n
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