Susan Collins calls Trump’s $5,000 dividend proposal with no cap ‘extraordinarily costly’

Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) questioned President Donald Trump’s idea of giving out $5,000 dividend checks to Americans if Republicans keep control of Congress after the 2026 midterm elections, calling the plan “extraordinarily costly.”“From the few details we have, it seems that the proposed $5,000 dividend would not have an income cap and would be extraordinarily costly,” Collins said in a statement.During his night one speech at the Republican midterm convention in Dallas, Texas, Trump promised all American adults $5,000 to spend in the U.S. if Republicans keep control over both the House and the Senate after the midterm elections. The plan has garnered mixed reactions from both Democrats and Republicans, with many Republicans supporting the plan outright, some Democrats backing the idea of dividends without any conditions, and other Democrats calling it a “bribe.” Collins, who is running in a toss-up race to defend her seat for a sixth term in the U.S. Senate, also called for a decoupling of the dividend decision from the condition on the 2026 midterm elections outcome.“Tax and spending decisions should be made based on the needs of the American people and the state of the economy, they should not appear to be tied to election results,” Collins said.Trump said in a Fox News interview on The Ingraham Angle that he made the checks conditional on the midterm outcomes because he believes that if Democrats control Congress, they would not have financially sound policies.“The Democrats can’t do it because with them it’s negative growth,” Trump said. “With us, it’s so positive.”Trump said the money would come as a dividend because of the “tremendous economic success” of the country under his administration.TEXAS DEMOCRAT GINA HINOJOSA BACKS TRUMP’S $5,000 DIVIDEND BUT REJECTS CONDITIONAL PAYOUTTrump’s plan of sending $5,000 to every American adult would cost the Treasury an estimated $1.3 trillion, which is about half of the federal government’s revenue from income taxes in fiscal 2025. Trump said the cost would be covered by tariff revenue, but tariffs so far have only brought in $167 billion in revenue.Collins, the chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Appropriations, is not one of the upper chamber’s most prominent fiscal hawks, but, throughout her campaigns, has prioritized fiscal responsibility and emphasized the amount of money she has directed toward Maine during her time on the committee.