Donald Trump’s been made a number of promises as he addressed the first ever midterm Republican National Convention in Dallas, Texas – including thousands of dollars to adult US citizens if republicans win both houses of Congress. Follow the latest below from the event.
Thursday 10 September 2026 06:16, UK
Key points
Analysis & explainers
A $5,000 payment, the ‘Trump Strait’ and a ballot call – the key takeaways from Trump’s speech
Donald Trump was the headline speaker at the first-ever Republican midterm convention, ahead of the elections for the two chambers of Congress in November.
The US president spoke for one hour and 47 minutes at the event in Dallas, Texas, touching on several notable topics in a wide-ranging address.
Here are the main takeaways:
Vance claims tariffs would fund Trump’s $5,000 promise – but that doesn’t add up
JD Vance pointed to tariffs when asked on Fox News how Donald Trump could fund his $5,000 promise.
He told the broadcaster the president is sayng “you will share in some of the benefit of this incredible wealth that we are creating”.
As Garett Haake, the chief White House correspondent for out US partner network NBC News, points out, tariff revenue doesn’t come close to covering the cost (estimated at around $1.35trn).
The Tax Policy Center in the US estimates tariffs will raise that amount over around 10 years.
“TPC estimates that tariffs will raise about $1.7 trillion in fiscal years 2026 through 2036, with $177 billion raised in 2026. The decline in revenue over time reflects TPC’s assumption that US buyers will gradually shift away from imports with high duties.”
Would Trump even be allowed to pay citizens $5,000?
Donald Trump made a big claim, but it’s not the first time he’s made this kind of promise – and not delivered.
Late last year, he proposed a $2,000 dividend from the money raised through tariffs, and he said he didn’t think he needed approval from Congress.
Trump did give members of the military a $1,776 check that he called a “warrior dividend”.
Marc Goldwein, the senior policy director at the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said Trump has no authority to send money to Americans without approval from Congress.
Dividends are something companies pay when there’s a surplus. The US is running $2trn annual deficits and has $40trn in debt.
“The idea that we’ve had fiscal success is backwards and bordering on laughable,” he said.
Watch: Trump’s ‘jaw-dropping’ $5k dividend pledge raises serious questions
“Jaw-dropping” is how our US correspondent Mark Stone described Donald Trump’s pledge to issue a $5,000 “dividend” to every adult US citizen if the Republican Party wins both chambers of Congress in the November midterm elections.
Trump made the announcement during what Stone calls a “marathon” speech at the first-ever Republican midterm convention, which is taking place in Dallas, Texas.
The US president’s promise, which he caveated by insisting the money would have to be spent in America, was the most notable takeaway from a wide-ranging, one-hour-and-47-minute address, during which Trump touched on the Iran war, the Strait of Hormuz, and the ongoing dispute with Canada.
Stone says that there will be “serious” questions about the affordability and legality of the pledge, which is estimated to cost the White House roughly $1.35trn (£1trn).
Watch his immediate reaction to the speech below:
In pictures: Trump headlines first-ever Republican midterm convention
The US president made a lengthy address at the inaugural Republican midterm convention, which has been nicknamed “Trumpapalooza”.
Trump’s speech touched on a range of topics, including the Iran war, the Strait of Hormuz, and the current trade war with Canada.
Perhaps most notable of all, however, was Trump’s promise to issue a “dividend” of $5,000 to every adult US citizen if the Republicans win both chambers of Congress in the elections next month.
Trump concludes keynote speech
Donald Trump has now concluded his keynote speech at the first-ever Republican midterm convention.
He finished his lengthy and wide-ranging address in a familiar fashion, saying:
“We will make America strong again. We will make America proud again. We will make America safe again. And we will make America great again.”
President pays tribute to ‘great friend’ Charlie Kirk
Trump has paid tribute to Charlie Kirk, the right-wing activist who was shot dead while speaking to students at Utah Valley University on 10 September last year.
Speaking about Kirk during his keynote speech at the Republican midterm convention, where Kirk’s widow Erika was in attendance, Trump said:
“Exactly one year ago tomorrow, a far left extremist assassinated my great friend and conservative voice, Charlie Kirk, because Charlie Kirk spoke the truth. What shocked millions of American was not only the fact that Charlie was murdered as bad as it was, but also how many people made an excuse for it or cheered for it. They were cheering some people sick people. For a brief moment, the mask came off the radical left and you saw what they were really only all about. And now those same people are trying to get power over you in this election, and they are all voting Democrat, okay? They’re all voting every one of them. And you can’t let it happen. We will not let them win. And in Charlie’s honour, I just want to say we love you, Charlie.”
Earlier this month, a judge ruled that Kirk’s alleged killer, 23-year-old Tyler Robinson, should stand trial and permitted prosecutors to seek the death penalty.
Robinson, who has been charged with aggravated murder, has pleaded not guilty to all seven charges for alleged murder.
Read more about the ruling here
Sky News
Trump: $5,000 ‘dividend’ for every adult US citizen if Republicans win chambers of Congress
Donald Trump has vowed to issue a “dividend” of $5,000 to every adult US citizen if the Republicans win the two chambers of Congress – the House of Representatives and the Senate – at the November midterm elections.
During his lengthy speech at the party’s first-ever midterm convention, Trump caveated his promise – which he called “the Trump dividend” – by saying the money must be spent in the US.
He said:
“I can make this promise to you. And here is my promise. If the Republicans win the House of Representatives and the United States Senate… 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.”
NBC, Sky’s US partner network, said the White House did not immediately respond to questions about where the estimated $1.35trn would come from and how the requirement to spend in the US could be enforced.
President threatens to strike ‘Pickaxe Mountain’ in Iran
In one of several references to the conflict in the Middle East, Trump warns that the US could strike “Pickaxe Mountain” in Iran.
The site, an under-construction Iranian nuclear facility buried deep under a mountain – known as Kuh-e Kolang Gaz La – is located on the south side of Iran’s Natanz nuclear enrichment facility.
Trump said: “We may have to give them a shot there, too, because somebody said there was little movement at the site.”
He added:
“We noticed there’s a little activity at pickaxe. I would advise Iran not to get cute because we will have to hit them very hard.”
For context: Natanz was bombed by the US during Operation Midnight Hammer in last year’s 12-day war between Iran and Israel, and again during the early stages of the war in February and March.
However, “Pickaxe Mountain” has remained untouched as Iran continued to order digging at the site.
What has been placed at the mountain remains unknown, as the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog has never gained access.
Rename Strait of Hormuz the ‘Trump Strait’, US president says
In reference to the Iran war, Trump says he wants to change the name of the Strait of Hormuz to the “Trump Strait”.
The US president, who earlier said the conflict would end after the November midterm elections, has made similar remarks about the key waterway, which remains a sticking point in the ongoing situation in the Middle East.
“We’re winning it [the war]. We control the Hormuz strait. We should call it the ‘Trump Strait’. I should get something out of it.
“I’m sure the Iranian leadership will be thrilled with that.”
Trump also makes reference to Lake Ontario, which he recently renamed “Lake America”, amid an escalating trade war with Canada.
He says the US’s neighbours are “dying” to make a deal before suggesting that the state of New Mexico, which shares a border with Texas – where the convention is taking place – should be called “New America”.
Watch: Trump renames Lake Ontario in the US
‘Pretend that I’m on the ballot’
The US president calls on Republican voters to “pretend that I’m on the ballot” ahead of the midterm elections in November.
Donald Trump warns that defeat will mean “you’re going to lose your border, you’re going to lose your tax cuts, you’re going to lose your safety and security, you’re going to lose your wealth”.
Trump adds:
“Our country is going through hell. You will be going through hell just like you did just two years ago. We went through hell. We were a laughing stock all over the world. We were laughing. They don’t laugh at us anymore, do they? They don’t laugh.”
As our US correspondent Mark Stone – who is reporting from the convention in Dallas – said earlier, the event is designed to ‘gee up’ support ahead of the elections.
The Republican Party will be hoping Trump’s presence will help to do just that, however, Stone said that his appearance could have the opposite effect on some voters (see 1.45am post).
For context: The midterms, which concern the make-up of the House of Representatives and the Senate, determine the balance of power in Congress – and therefore how easily the White House can pass legislation, approve spending and advance its agenda.
Thirty-five seats are being contested in November: 22 held by Republicans and 13 by Democrats. Democrats need a net gain of four seats to take outright control.
Trump: Republicans will ‘leave the world in our dust’
Donald Trump begins his speech at the first-ever Republican midterm convention by looking ahead to the elections in November.
He said:
“In 55 days, Americans will be going to the polls and one of the most important elections in our country’s history. Your vote will decide whether our country stumbles at the starting gate of the next 250 years, or surges forward, and never, ever looks back.”
The US president goes on to take a swipe at the Democrats, saying that if “we hand America’s future to the radical left. Democrats and our nation will spend the next decade just getting back on its feet”.
“It will be a tragedy,” Trump adds. “Vote Republican and we will leave the world in our dust for generations to come.”
Trump about to deliver keynote speech – watch and follow live
Donald Trump has just arrived on stage and is about to begin his keynote speech at the first-ever Republican midterm convention, which is taking place in Dallas.
Watch in the stream above and stay with us for live text updates.
Republican Party ‘never been more united’, says Treasury secretary
Treasury secretary Scott Bessent has been using his time on stage at the Republican midterm convention to heap praise onto the US president.
Bessent says the convention comes at “a defining moment in the history of our Republic”, before going on to hail Donald Trump for “tax cuts, rebalancing trade, and reclaiming the US’s position as the energy superpower”.
He adds that Trump is “creating assets and expanding ownerships” and says American manufacturing is “roaring back”.
Bessent ends his address by insisting the “work has only just begun”, and that the Republican Party has “never been more united”.
First Republican midterm convention a ‘gamble’ as party tries to ‘gee up’ support
By Mark Stone, US correspondent in Dallas
I’ve got real 2024 vibes here. Dallas 2026 feels a lot like Milwaukee 2024 in quite a few ways.
But it’s distinct in one fundamental way: there is no formal purpose of this ‘midterm’ convention.
The Republicans and the Democrats hold massive conventions just before the presidential election every four years to anoint their chosen candidate, or nominee for president. But to hold one prior to the midterm elections (which are in November) is new.
There’s no secret: this is happening to gee up support. Some have told me it’s to remind voters of what they see as President Trump’s successes. The polls are tight. They always are at this half way point in a presidential cycle. Incumbent presidents tend to struggle and potentially pull down their party’s chances. But Trump’s approval ratings are at record lows. And that’s the key point and jeopardy too. Here people are all-in for Donald Trump; this is his convention.
But it’s a gamble. There are plenty of Republicans – not here – who think Trump’s the problem. They think he and his ways make the Republicans less not more electable.
The strategy is to remind conservative voters of Trump’s successes and of the dangers they see in the Democratic Party direction.
On Trump’s record, there’s lots of talk about his immigration crackdown – it’s a fact that he’s got immigration over the southern border down to a trickle.
And on the Democrats, their argument is that it’s not the moderate party it once was but instead represents far-left socialism.
Both parties are shifting to what was once considered periphery. The voters in the middle find themselves increasingly homeless.
Trump told Iran war could last duration of his term – report
Top White House advisers have raised with Donald Trump the prospect that the Iran war could last for the remainder of his term in office, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The report comes as the US president earlier claimed that conflict “will end immediately” after the midterm elections in November.
Speaking to reporters on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews ahead of his flight to Dallas, where he is due to deliver a speech at the first-ever Republican midterm convention in a few hours, Trump said the war would end because Iran “can’t hold out any longer – they’re desperate to try and affect the election”.
His comments echo those he has made repeatedly throughout the war, claiming on numerous occasions that the end was imminent.
The US president’s second term is due to end at the start of 2029, however, Trump has previously hinted at a possible third term, despite the US Constitution stating that “no person… shall be elected more than twice”.
‘I’m always going to stand with America’: Democratic senator makes surprise appearance
Democratic Senator John Fetterman has made a surprise appearance via video at the Republican midterm convention.
Fetterman introduced his Republican colleague from Pennsylvania, Senator Dave McCormick, as his “great friend”, and declared he would work with Donald Trump to protect the state’s steel industry.
Fetterman said:
“Yes, I’m a Democrat. Why am I here talking to you today? Because I’m a common-sense Democrat. I’m always going to stand with America, I’m always going to reject the extremes of socialism and that anti-America way of life.”
‘If we lose Texas… we lose America’
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a candidate for the US Senate, has used his time on stage at the Republican midterm convention to warn voters that “if we lose Texas… we lose America”.
Speaking at the event in Dallas, Paxton said he would “fight to preserve the American dream”, and took aim at his Democratic opponent James Talarico by saying he is “running to destroy it”.
Paxton added:
“I need your prayers, your votes, and your support.
“If we lose Texas, we lose the common-sense revolution. If we lose this revolution, we lose America.”
Analysis: ‘Curious’ convention could prove divisive for Republican voters
As the convention in Dallas builds towards Donald Trump’s keynote speech in a few hours (scheduled for around 2am UK time), the event may not necessarily have the desired effect on some Republican voters.
That’s the view of Sky’s US correspondent Mark Stone, who is reporting from what he calls a “curious” convention – curious, he explains, because such an event does not normally happen ahead of a midterm election.
Stone says the aim of the convention is to “gee up support” for the Republican Party, which he says is “worried” it might lose one or both houses of Congress in November.
On the face of it, Trump’s attendance in Texas is designed to remind voters of what the party would see as the US president’s “successes” while in office.
However, as Stone explains, Trump’s presence “might not be such a good thing” for some voters, given Trump’s slump in the opinion polls and a wider dissatisfaction over inflation and the war in Iran.
‘Trump is for the people… I wish the world could see him for that’
We’ve caught up with US correspondent Mark Stone in Dallas at the convention, which he says is giving “2024 vibes”.
“I was at the Republican convention in Milwaukee back then, but this is a bit of a weird one,” he says. “This is a curious convention because they don’t normally happen ahead of a midterm election.”
Stone speaks to one Trump supporter who has travelled over 1,000 miles to Dallas from Wyoming to be in attendance tonight.
She says: “Trump is for America. Trump is for people… He doesn’t want anybody to be punished or suffer or whatever. He’s got a very big heart. And that’s the sad thing. I wish the world could see him for that.”
Is Trump about to lose Texas?
In the latest episode of Trump 100, US correspondents Mark Stone and David Blevins delve into the reasons Donald Trump has decided to launch his party’s midterm campaign in Dallas.
From agriculture and the price of beef to the future of AI in the Lone Star State, there’s plenty to discuss.
They also ask why some key Republican figures – including Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state – are skipping the event.
Source: news.sky.com
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