Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis warned that borrowing money to fund a proposed $5,000 dividend for every adult American would increase inflation and deepen the national debt. His remarks come as President Donald Trump has said he would issue such a dividend if Republicans win both chambers of Congress during the midterm elections.
“What I would say is, if you are getting surplus revenue, you should cut people’s tax and return it to the people,” DeSantis said on Thursday. “What I don’t think you wanna do is borrow another … trillion and a half dollars and then just try to flood that into the economy, because that will lead to more inflation. That will lead to more debt,” he said, “and more inflation.”
With the election on the horizon, President Donald Trump declared during remarks at the Republicans’ midterm convention on Wednesday that “because of our tremendous strength and success economically, I will issue a dividend to every adult citizen in the United States of America for $5,000” if the GOP wins the House and Senate.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis delivers his State of the State address during the first day of the legislative session at the Florida State Capitol on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Tallahassee, Fla. (Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald/Tribune News Service via Getty Images / Getty Images)
“The only caveat I have is that the dividend that we’re making must be spent in the United States of America,” Trump said. “So if the Republicans win, you win with us and you get $5,000. It will be called the Trump dividend,” he declared.
The U.S. national debt recently surpassed the $40 trillion mark.
DeSantis noted that it is becoming increasingly costly to service the U.S. national debt, predicting that the issue will “lead … to some upheavals, unfortunately,” adding, “I hope I’m wrong.”
The governor advocated for a Constitutional amendment to require a balanced federal budget.
“But the way it works now in Congress, their incentives are to add debt for short-term political benefit,” DeSantis said. “They never have to make tough decisions.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment on Friday.
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