00:00It was completely tactless to bring up the rain clouds of that time.
00:02In his keynote address at the convention, President Trump made a fairly unconventional pledge.
00:06He stated that if the Republicans take control of both the House and the Senate,
00:09they will pay a dividend of $5,000 to all adult American citizens.
00:12President Trump even set a condition that this money must be spent within the United States.
00:17He also said,
00:18It is just like a successful corporation paying cash dividends to its shareholders.
00:22The only catch is that the dividends we pay must be spent in the United States
00:25because I don't want you going to Canada to spend that money.
00:27However, he did not elaborate on the specific funding sources or payment methods
00:31required to distribute $5,000 per person.
00:34President Trump instead implied that this could be achieved
00:36through America's economic success and immense strength.
00:38$5,000 is about 7 million won in Korean currency.
00:41The issue is the timing of this pledge's announcement.
00:43President Trump is strongly pushing the message that the Republican Party
00:46must secure control of Congress in these midterm elections.
00:49In particular, tying the cash handouts directly to the election results
00:52is likely to fuel political controversy.
00:54Because the condition is that the Republicans must win both the House and the Senate
00:58to distribute the $5,000 voters could interpret this as receiving cash
01:01if they vote for a specific party.
01:03Sparking controversy over vote buying.
01:05President Trump has made similar remarks multiple times in the past,
01:08suggesting he would push for cash handouts to the American people.
01:11He has brought up similar proposals five times so far,
01:13but none of them ever led to actual payouts.
01:15That is because for a president to push for large-scale cash handouts in the United States,
01:19an executive decision alone is not enough.
01:21It also requires resolving legislative and budget matters in Congress.
01:24And even with Republicans taking control of Congress this time,
01:27the $5,000 payout is by no means guaranteed right away.
01:30Further discussions are needed in Congress regarding eligibility,
01:32scale, funding sources, and legal grounds.
01:34President Trump has framed this midterm election itself as a referendum
01:38on his own political support.
01:39In his speech, he addressed why the incumbent president's party rarely wins the midterms,
01:44even when the president does a great job,
01:46arguing, we have to change this.
01:48He then asked voters to think of him as being on the ballot,
01:52emphasizing, just pretend one more time that I'm on that ballot.
01:56This can be interpreted as a message aimed at linking votes for Republican candidates
01:59in this election to support for President Trump.
02:02Currently, Democrats are projected to have a chance of winning the House,
02:05and the race for the Senate also remains extremely tight.
02:08In this situation, President Trump is further highlighting the importance of these midterms
02:11by promising a $5,000 cash payment on the condition that Republicans gain control of Congress.
02:16Whether American voters view this pledge as actual economic relief
02:19or merely a pre-election political promise
02:21is likely to become a major subject of debate going forward.
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