Home · Politics · Oct 7 archive
Trump Wants the Fed to Rescue Him Ahead of the Midterms. That’s Probably Not Going to Happen
Confirmed
In Short: US President Donald Trump made an extraordinary pledge in Dallas at a special Republican National Convention ahead of the midterms, offering every American adult $5000 if the Republican Party retains control of the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The pledge was immediately dismissed by Democrats as “another empty promise.” Trump emphasized that the $5000 dividend must be spent in the United States, not on foreign goods.
Speaking to the crowd, Trump said, “The only condition on the ‘dividend’ was that it would have to be spent in America, not on foreign goods.” He added, “If I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state and I had a chance to get a big plant in, an AI plant or a data center, I would absolutely want it.”
The legal implications of Trump’s announcement were not immediately clear. The United States Code prohibits vote buying or selling, punishing anyone who “makes or offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate.”
Meanwhile, Trump criticized the current economic situation, saying, “Meanwhile, working families get nothing except sky-high receipts at the grocery store and the pump, unaffordable healthcare premiums, and wages that aren’t keeping up with inflation.” He also accused Democrats of wanting to steal money for reparations.
With a cratering approval rating and waning support from Republican voters, Trump could use any help he could get on pitching an improving economic situation before November’s midterms.
Gbenga Ajilore, chief economist at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, told TPM, “I would be shocked if they cut rates at the moment because, the thing is, [inflation is] still way above two percent.” Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, added, “I think that independence is holding.”
The Federal Reserve’s rate-setting lever is primarily used to maintain a high national employment rate while tamping down inflation. All 12 voting members of the Federal Reserve Open Committee decided unanimously last month that the first rate hike since 2023 was in order.
Trump’s economic policies also put him at odds with most Americans, according to Shivaram, a commentator. “Broadly speaking, Trump is very cozy with tech company leaders, and he wants pretty little regulation over AI, in order to favor innovation,” Shivaram said.
The pledge and economic policies highlight the complex legal and economic challenges Trump faces as he seeks to boost his party’s chances in the upcoming midterms.
What's confirmed
- Speaking in Dallas at a special Republican National Convention ahead of the midterms, Trump said the only condition on the “dividend” was that it would have to be spent in America, not on foreign goods.
- Dallas: US President Donald Trump made an extraordinary pledge to pay every American adult $US5000 ($7000) if the Republican Party retains the House of Representatives and the Senate at November’s midterm elections, in a move immediately dismissed by Democrats as “another empty promise”.
- The United States Code prohibits vote buying or selling, punishing anyone who “makes or offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate”.
- “They want to steal your money for reparations,” he said.
- The legal implications of Trump’s announcement were not immediately clear.
- “The only people reaping the benefits of Trump’s economy are himself, his family, and his ultrarich elite donors,” he said.
What's still developing
- “I don’t blame Kevin,” Trump said, according to the TIME transcript.
- “If there’s any sort of hint that the Fed, the Fed chair has been influenced by the White House, you’ll see that reflected in the market,” Ajilore said.
- And then to complicate things further, yesterday, he posted on social media and said that towns that don't want data centers are, quote, "backwards and poor."