President Donald Trump is "committed" to providing each American with a $2,000 dividend check funded by tariff revenue, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. She made the announcement on Wednesday, stating that White House officials are exploring ways to implement the plan Trump proposed in a social media post over the weekend.

Leavitt emphasized that the president is determined to make this happen. "The president made it clear he wants to make it happen," she told reporters. "So his team of economic advisers are looking into it."

This declaration comes shortly after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expressed skepticism about the feasibility of Trump's proposal. Bessent suggested that the payout might simply refer to tax savings included in Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill legislation. He stated, "It could be just the tax decreases that we are seeing on the president's agenda. No tax on tips, no tax on overtime, no tax on Social Security, deductibility on auto loans. Those are substantial deductions that are being financed in the tax bill."

Economists have raised concerns about whether the dividend can be funded with the available tariff revenue. Trump announced the dividend plan in a brief social media message on Sunday, highlighting tariff-related tax revenue. He wrote, "People that are against Tariffs are FOOLS! We are now the Richest, Most Respected Country In the World, With Almost No Inflation, and A Record Stock Market Price. 401k's are Highest EVER. A dividend of at least $2000 a person (not including high income people!) will be paid to everyone."

The post did not clarify who would qualify for the payout or how the policy would be implemented. During the pandemic, two stimulus checks authorized by Trump were available to individuals earning up to $75,000 and couples making up to $150,000. Higher earners received smaller payments. If the proposed dividend were to be available to anyone earning $100,000 or less, it could potentially reach about 150 million Americans, costing approximately $300 billion in total, according to Erica York, a policy expert at the Tax Foundation.

As of September 30, the federal government had generated $195 billion in tariff-related revenue, according to the Treasury Department. This amount falls short of the estimated $300 billion needed for the proposed dividend checks. However, the Trump administration could potentially promise to pay the dividend from anticipated future tariff revenue. The Treasury Department has projected $3 trillion in tariff revenue over the next decade. If this approach is taken, the dividend payments would contribute to the federal debt, which currently exceeds $38 trillion, according to the Treasury Department.