Ross Gerber Trashes Trump's $5,000 Dividend Plan, Justin Wolfers Says 'You Accidentally Started Another Trade War, Mr President'

Radhika Anilkumar Nadig

Sun, September 13, 2026 at 9:00 PM GMT+3 6 min read

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President Donald Trump promised a $5,000 dividend payout to adult U.S. citizens if Republicans hold Congress in November, a plan investor Ross Gerber vehemently criticized, while economist Justin Wolfers said it violates global trade rules and dictates how Americans spend it.

Gerber Trashes Trump's Dividend Plan

Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management, warned Thursday that Trump's plan would fuel inflation if funded by printing money.

"So now he wants to print money and send inflation through the roof if we vote his cronies in," Gerber said on X.

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He added that Republicans seem intent on losing control of the House and Senate and said that people are growing weary of these kinds of promises.

Veteran investor Peter Schiff called the payout a "bribe" that would force the Federal Reserve to print money, warning it could trigger inflation higher than under former President Joe Biden.

A Voucher, Not Freedom

Wolfers, in a post on X, argued the plan amounts to the government dictating consumer spending rather than expanding it, saying a check that tells people what to buy and where to buy it "is not freedom."

He warned that if the payout is structured as a domestic-only voucher, it would violate World Trade Organization rules barring subsidies contingent on buying domestic over imported goods.

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"So either Trump means what he says, and this is a domestic purchase voucher that breaks global trade… Oops, you just accidentally started another trade war, Mr. President," Wolfers said, adding that if he doesn't mean it, the plan is just "a slogan with no operational content."

Either way, he said, "This isn't serious policy."

Trump's $5,000 idea is a government check that tells you what to buy and where to buy it. Fine, call it whatever you want, but it's not freedom.⁣
⁣
And if it's really a domestic-only voucher, it violates WTO rules against subsidizing local over imported goods. That's not a… pic.twitter.com/FIXbVjUFJS

— Justin Wolfers (@JustinWolfers) September 11, 2026

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A Price Tag Washington Can't Cover

Based on the Census Bureau's 2024 estimates of 245.3 million adult citizens, the $5,000 payout would cost roughly $1.23 trillion, more than the Pentagon's entire fiscal 2026 budget. It would also exceed the roughly $1 trillion the Congressional Budget Office projects the federal government will spend on net interest in fiscal 2026.

U.S. producer prices climbed 5.4% year-over-year in August, topping the 5.3% economists had forecast and accelerating from July's 4.8% pace, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.

The midterm elections are set to take place on Nov. 3.

Photo courtesy: Shutterstock

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