Trump, who had earlier suggested the checks would be sent out before the 2026 midterm elections, seemed puzzled and asked, “I did do that? When did I do that?”

After a brief pause, he explained that he had been thinking of a different initiative—the $1,776 bonus for service members.

Even so, Trump maintained that the $2,000 payments were still likely to go out later in the year, citing the large amount of tariff revenue he expects the government to collect.

Trump addresses tariff-funded checks for Americans

The pledge to issue $2,000 payments to middle- and lower-income Americans was originally tied to revenue from Donald Trump’s tariffs.

While the exact timeline for the payouts remains unclear, Trump told reporters that the money coming in from tariffs would make the payments possible. “The tariff money is so substantial that’s coming in, that I’ll be able to do 2,000 sometime, I would say, toward the end of the year,” he said.