President Donald Trump escalated his rhetoric in a way that caught critics off guard, directing unusually sharp language not at his political opponents, but inward toward his own base.
The message carried a tone of threat, and urgency and consequences in a way that left observers questioning whether it was still political messaging — or something more predatory taking shape in plain sight.
In a fundraising email, Trump told supporters that Democrats would seize their so-called “tariff rebate checks” and hand the money to undocumented immigrants unless donors responded within an hour. “Troubles are BOILING OVER,” the message declared. “Dems want to send your check to illegals if you don’t respond in the next hour!”
The email framed an immediate donation as the only way to stop catastrophe. “Only a massive and immediate response will do,” it continued. “I need YOU to help me hit my end-of-year fundraising goal by midnight tomorrow or EVERYTHING we’ve worked so hard to accomplish could go BYE BYE.”
The language closely mirrors the mechanics of common financial scams: urgency, fear, and the promise of money that will vanish unless the recipient acts immediately.
Trump’s latest brazen swindle left readers laughing in disbelief.
“Donald has entered his Nigerian prince era,” one commenter wrote on Threads.
“Donald Trump counts on his supporters being the dumbest people on the planet,” another critic added.
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Another mocked, “So if enough maggots don’t send enough money, everything trumpie has accomplished will go bye bye? So we have hope!”
Trump’s email landed amid widespread confusion he helped create earlier this month, when he floated the idea of sending checks to Americans to offset the cost of his “Liberation Day” tariffs.
The suggestion resembled the pandemic-era stimulus payments he authorized during his first term, and scammers quickly seized on it. The Better Business Bureau flagged calls promising unclaimed tariff rebate checks worth more than $5,000, targeting people already unsure whether such a program even existed.
Rather than backing away from the confusion, Trump’s fundraising operation leaned into it. A similar email earlier this month urged recipients to “confirm” their names to receive the checks and claimed to be “the only tariff rebate email authorized by President Trump.”
The fine print noted it was paid for by Never Surrender, Inc., a rebranded super PAC tied to Trump’s 2024 campaign, and that it was not official government communication.
To critics, the resemblance to classic con schemes was impossible to ignore.
“How tf is this legal?” one person asked on Threads.
Another observed, “Really? Payment to be made to him personally and not to the Republican Party? Only fools could fall for this trap!”
Progressive commentator Brian Tyler Cohen amplified concerns on Facebook, warning that the rhetoric could leave supporters vulnerable to real financial fraud.
Economists have repeatedly said the premise behind Trump’s claims makes little sense. Tariffs are taxes paid by importers that often get passed on to consumers, not a pot of surplus cash that can be redistributed later.
Even so, Trump has variously claimed his trade policies have generated “millions” or “billions,” figures that shift from one appearance to the next.
The episode comes as Trump faces mounting pressure heading into the 2026 midterms. Congress will again confront familiar flashpoints: government spending fights, rising health care costs, and the constant threat of a shutdown. Those battles will unfold as the Supreme Court weighs challenges that could undermine tariffs central to Trump’s economic agenda, which the administration claims could raise more than $3.3 trillion over the next decade.
At the same time, the Justice Department’s slow release of records tied to investigations of Jeffrey Epstein continues to intrude on the political conversation, threatening to overshadow Trump’s messaging. With Congress narrowly divided, even routine legislation has become difficult. Lawmakers approved just 61 laws in 2025, a stark contrast to the hundreds typically passed in a two-year session.
Trump isn’t running, but the midterms will serve as a referendum on his agenda.
A Democratic takeover of the House would restore subpoena power to the opposition and reopen the door to investigations that once led to two impeachments. Trump has already urged potential Senate and gubernatorial candidates to stay put, wary of primary battles that could weaken Republican control.
His sense of urgency spiked after November’s state and local elections, when Democrats swept key races and exit polls showed voters punishing Republicans over the cost of living. He let his fear known again last week during a Republican retreat, admitting that Democrats will try to impeach him if they don’t win the midterms.
Current polling reflects a precarious position for the incumbent. A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in mid-December placed the president’s approval rating at 39 percent.
