US President Donald Trump apparently put a price tag on the ballot. POTUS’s eye-catching $5,000 “Trump Dividend” turned the Republican midterm push into something resembling a political cashback offer, instantly raising eyebrows, questions, and accusations of vote-buying.
President unveiled proposal during the Republican Party’s first-ever midterm convention in Dallas, telling voters that every American adult could receive the payment if Republicans retain control of Congress in November.
There is, naturally, a rather large catch, nobody has yet explained exactly how the plan would work, where the money would come from or whether such payments would even be legal. And the bill would not exactly be pocket change.
With around 270 million US adults, handing everyone $5,000 would mean a staggering price tag of roughly $1.35 trillion. Trump made pledge during an extraordinary one-hour-and-45-minute prime-time speech, in which he also declared that he had delivered what he called “the greatest two years in the history of the presidency.”
Apparently, the midterms are now also a referendum on Trump’s greatest hits.
Trump made no attempt to hide his central role in the Republican campaign. He promised to visit battleground states and competitive congressional districts repeatedly during the eight weeks before Election Day, effectively turning the midterms into another Trump campaign tour.
He even offered supporters a simple instruction: “I’m asking you to pretend that I’m on the ballot.” For Republicans fighting tight races, that may be easier said than done.
Some candidates need Trump’s loyal MAGA voters. Others need swing voters who have become increasingly uncomfortable with the president.
Several vulnerable Republicans appear to have decided they would rather not gamble on the Trump-heavy gathering.
Michigan Representative Tom Barrett, Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan and Maine Senator Susan Collins were among those who skipped the convention despite facing strong Democratic challengers. Others went all in.
At least 16 candidates involved in competitive House and Senate races were scheduled to speak, including Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Trump ally fighting Democrat James Talarico for a Senate seat, and Ohio Senator Jon Husted, who is taking on former Senator Sherrod Brown.
Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters even gave the Trump-centric gathering a suitably Trumpian nickname: “Trumpapalooza.”
Because apparently a political convention wasn’t Trump-heavy enough without giving it a festival name.
The dividend proposal could become one of the most eye-catching promises of the midterm campaign, but its enormous potential cost raises immediate questions. A payment of $5,000 to approximately 270 million adults would require about $1.35 trillion.
That is quite a cheque to write, and the mechanics behind it remain unclear. Trump’s proposal also arrives at a politically awkward moment, with polls showing his approval ratings at an all-time low and voters increasingly focused on the cost of living.
Ironically, the same voters worried about prices are now being offered a five-thousand-dollar election dividend. The convention was supposed to showcase Trump’s policies, but much of the early programme instead revolved around attacking Democrats.
Republican speakers repeatedly described Democrats as “socialists” and “communists”, while focusing heavily on issues such as border security and transgender participation in women’s sports.
But two subjects affecting voters’ everyday concerns, the Iran war and the cost of living, received comparatively less attention. That did not go unnoticed.
Alabama state Representative Ernie Yarbrough said voters wanted Trump to explain how long the Iran conflict could continue and what exactly Washington hoped to achieve. People, it seems, would like to know whether another endless war is being planned.
Trump defended his decision to attack Tehran, arguing that military action was necessary to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. He also offered another prediction, oil prices would fall once the United States won the war with Iran. Trump said victory would come soon.
Trump claimed the 21,000-seat arena was “packed” during his speech. However, upper sections of the venue remained noticeably empty as he addressed the crowd. Still, the message from the convention was unmistakable.
Republicans are betting heavily on Trump’s ability to bring out the voters who propelled him to the presidency two years ago, even as polling suggests his popularity has taken a serious hit.
Democrats, meanwhile, are being presented to voters as radical, socialist and communist — with South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, who chairs the Republican Senate campaign operation, calling them “dangerous, radical and weird.”
Trump is scheduled to return Thursday to deliver the convention’s closing address after Vice President JD Vance gives the keynote speech.
Trump predicts end to Iran conflict, oil price drop after November midterms
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