A recent survey conducted by the Economist/YouGov indicates that a significant majority of Americans are in favor of receiving $5,000 stimulus checks from the federal government.
The survey assessed public opinion on the potential policy of “issuing $5,000 stimulus checks to all Americans who pay federal income tax.” This discussion was sparked by Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) leader Elon Musk’s public comments on the subject.
In total, 57 percent of respondents expressed support for this initiative, while 14 percent were against it and 18 percent were uncertain. Among supporters, 35 percent indicated they “strongly” back the proposal.
A considerable majority of Republicans and independents—67 percent and 57 percent, respectively—voiced their support for $5,000 stimulus checks. Additionally, a plurality of Democrats (48 percent) also showed approval. In contrast, 31 percent of Democrats, along with 22 percent of independents and 20 percent of Republicans, opposed the proposal.
The survey was conducted from February 23-25, 2025, involving 1,604 U.S. adults, with a margin of error of +/- 3.4 percent.
This discussion follows CEO James Fishback of InvestAzoria proposing a “DOGE Dividend” on X, characterizing it as “a tax refund check sent to every taxpayer, funded solely by a portion of the total savings achieved through DOGE.” He presented calculations concluding that if DOGE could indeed realize $2 trillion in savings, they could return 20 percent of those savings ($400 billion) to the 79 million U.S. households that pay federal income tax, resulting in approximately $5,000 per household.
“I will check with the President,” Musk responded.
This discussion also coincides with the fact that the majority of Americans endorse DOGE. Over 75 percent believe that “a thorough review of all government expenditures is essential.”
DOGE’s website reports that the estimated savings attributed to DOGE currently total $105 billion.
