In early 2025, a bold proposal to send $5,000 stimulus checks to American families made a big splash in the news. This plan, called the “DOGE Dividend,” was introduced by James Fishback, an investment CEO, and backed by Elon Musk, the former head of DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency).
The idea was to take 20% of the savings found by DOGE and distribute it as stimulus checks to American households.
The goal was huge: Fishback projected that the government would save $2 trillion in 18 months, with about $400 billion available for direct payments to taxpayers.
However, there was a catch. Only those who paid federal income taxes, roughly people earning over $40,000, would qualify for the checks. The plan was designed to avoid the inflation concerns seen in earlier stimulus checks.
Trump’s $5,000 DOGE Stimulus: Where Did the Money Go?
The public was excited when Elon Musk tweeted that he would “check with the President” about the idea. Soon after, President Trump endorsed the plan at a Miami summit, saying, “We’re considering giving 20% of the DOGE savings to American citizens.”
The proposal seemed to have a lot of public support. A poll in February 2025 showed that 67% of Americans, including 60% of Republicans, backed the idea. People liked the concept of returning “wasted” tax dollars and fixing government inefficiencies.
Reality Hits: The Savings Never Added Up
Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. By May 2025, the savings from DOGE were much smaller than expected—only $170 billion, far from the $2 trillion promised. Independent groups looking into the plan said the actual savings were closer to $35 billion, after considering losses caused by disruptions to government services.
As a result, the $5,000 checks turned into a much smaller amount. Instead of $5,000, the checks would have been only around $89 per household, a far cry from what was promised. This was a huge disappointment for many.
Political Opposition and Economic Concerns
The plan faced fierce opposition from politicians, especially from House Speaker Mike Johnson, who said the checks were “fiscally irresponsible,” especially with the national debt already over $36 trillion. Economists also voiced concerns about the risks of inflation if the checks were sent out without enough savings to back them up.
Without proper legislation to support the idea, and with opposition from both political parties, the plan started to fall apart. The bipartisan House DOGE Caucus, which was supposed to help move the plan forward, collapsed after only two meetings.
The Plan Collapses
In addition to all these issues, DOGE didn’t have the legal power to cut programs like Social Security and Medicare, which made the $2 trillion savings impossible. The plan was never realistic, as warned by experts like economist Jessica Riedl.
The plan lost further momentum when Elon Musk suddenly left his role in DOGE in April 2025. After that, Musk stopped supporting the idea, and the focus shifted away from the stimulus checks.
What Happened to the Stimulus Checks?
By late spring 2025, the Trump administration quietly dropped the DOGE Dividend plan. Instead, the focus shifted to extending the 2017 tax cuts. In the end, taxpayers received neither the big checks nor the promised savings.
This failed proposal became just another example of a grand idea that never worked out. There are no new stimulus checks being planned right now, and people are left wondering if we’ll ever see another round of checks like those sent out during the pandemic under Trump and Biden to help the economy.
