GOP Senator Doesn’t Support Trump’s $2,000 Tariff Refunds
Sen. Ron Johnson is tapping the brakes on President Trump’s push to return tariff revenue directly to working families, warning that the federal government’s staggering debt load must be confronted before Washington begins issuing $2,000 “tariff dividend” checks.
Speaking Monday on Fox Business Network’s “Mornings With Maria,” the Wisconsin Republican said he supports the philosophy behind the proposal — using revenue from Trump’s aggressive tariff strategy to benefit the American people rather than foreign competitors — but insisted that fiscal stability must come first.
“We’re $38 trillion in debt,” Johnson said. “We’ve averaged $1.89 trillion deficits over the last five years. In the next 10 years, the projection’s about $26 trillion from accumulated deficits.”
“We have to address the deficit problem. We are on borrowed time here. So many people are whistling by the graveyard. If we’re bringing in revenue through the tariffs, that oughta be applied to reduce the deficit,” he added.
President Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of distributing tariff-funded payments to Americans, a policy that aligns with his broader effort to use reciprocal tariffs to rebuild U.S. manufacturing and penalize countries that exploit American markets. Earlier this month, he proposed issuing $2,000 checks to households under a specific income threshold — a figure Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent signaled would likely be around $100,000 for families, the New York Post reported.
But even with Republican majorities in Congress, Johnson and several other fiscal hawks have suggested the plan is unlikely to advance.
“We can’t afford it,” Johnson said plainly. “I wish we were in a position to return the American public their money, but we’re not. Again, we’ll have at least a $2 trillion deficit this year.
“That compares to prior to the pandemic, President Trump had deficits of $800 billion. [Barack] Obama, his last four years, $550 billion a year. Now, we’re $2 trillion? Completely unacceptable. We have to start focusing on that and doing something about it.”
Trump’s latest proposal followed Democrat victories in New Jersey and Virginia, where the Left successfully framed itself as the party of “affordability.” It also came in the wake of Supreme Court arguments concerning the president’s use of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) to impose sweeping “reciprocal” and “trafficking” tariffs on dozens of countries — a core piece of his America First economic doctrine.
IEEPA tariffs have brought in roughly $90 billion between their implementation and Sept. 23, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported, according to The Post. Between Sept. 30, 2024, and Aug. 31, the United States pulled in an additional $195.9 billion in tariff revenue.
Erica York, vice president of federal tax policy at the Tax Foundation, estimated that limiting the proposed dividends to individuals earning under $100,000 would cost around $300 billion.
Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance acknowledged last week that the administration is working to counter public skepticism about the nation’s economic trajectory. Speaking at a Breitbart News event, Vance urged Americans to give the administration time as inflation continues to cool and Trump’s broader economic framework takes hold.
“We get it and we hear you, and we know that there’s a lot of work to do,” Vance said. “As much progress as we’ve made, it’s going to take a little time for Americans to feel that.”
Vance noted that years of inflation under then-President Joe Biden left long-lasting damage, especially in household staples such as groceries. At one point, he even challenged one of the administration’s talking points — the decline in egg prices since Trump took office — by noting that the relief is still insufficient for families under financial strain.
“If you’re an American who’s just struggling to get by, you work hard, you pay your taxes, you want your kids to have good opportunities. And then the price of eggs goes from $2 a dozen to $8 a dozen under the Biden administration, and then it goes from $8 a dozen to maybe $6.50 a dozen,” Vance said. “Well, to you that is still a major problem.”
With midterms approaching, the White House and Republican leadership are working to sharpen their economic message — highlighting the early benefits of Trump’s trade reforms while acknowledging the deep fiscal mess inherited from the previous administration.