Our most recent book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. It includes a chapter on congressional and state elections.
President Donald Trump dropped a hot mess of a half-baked midterm promise in lawmakers’ laps last night.
Trump at the GOP’s convention pledged to send $5,000 to every adult in the U.S. if Republicans retain control of Congress in the midterms, Ashley Ahn reports. And while the crowd of thousands of his supporters gathered at Dallas’ American Airlines Center cheered the announcement, GOP fiscal hawks were balking at the effort before Trump even left the stage.
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If the president followed through on such a plan, it would likely worsen inflation by further boosting consumer spending and supporting higher prices, which are already elevated due to the war in Iran. The dividend could also exacerbate a rise in longer-term borrowing costs for the U.S. government, which have been going up in part on fears the federal debt is growing unsustainable.
The move comes after months of Republicans pleading with Trump to focus his messaging — and fundraising war chest — on helping the party retain control of Capitol Hill come November.
Some House Republicans following the speech told Meredith Lee Hill the effort showed how desperate the president was in the last weeks of midterm campaigning.
“It’s a little late,” one House Republican, granted anonymity to speak candidly, said.
Others may have been relieved that the president was touting a message aimed at affordability concerns at the top of voters’ minds.
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Sen. Ted Cruz in an exclusive interview with POLITICO’s Dasha Burns after Trump’s speech, said he’d prefer to tie work requirements to the dividends, but added specifics would need to be worked through.
“$1.3 trillion dollars is a massive amount,” Cruz said, referring to his estimate for the plan. But, he said it’s less than if Democrats won back power and spent like “drunken sailors.”
