President Trump Announces $612 Stimulus Checks-Fiction!

President Trump Announces $612 Stimulus Payment-Fiction! 

Summary of eRumor:
President Trump has announced a $612 stimulus payment to “deserving Americans.”
The Truth:
A satirical website is behind false reports that President Trump has promised a $612 stimulus payment to “deserving Americans.”
The story appeared at a website called The Resistance: Last Line of Defense on February 13, 2017, under the headline, “BREAKING: Trump Just Gave Every Working, Legal Man, Woman and Child in the USA $612 Each!” that begins:

If you’re not a lazy bum on welfare or an illegal here to steal food stamps and free medicine, President Trump has some good news for you. You, your wife and your children will all be receiving a stimulus bonus of $612 each to spend however you see fit inside the United States.

The program, called “Tax Relief For Deserving Americans,” will give nothing to those who choose not to work, people in prison or illegal aliens. People on welfare in good standing with work programs or job training will receive an extra $25 in bonus food stamps instead. The White House Communication and Propaganda Office released a statement about the program and how it will impact the economy.

Of course, there’s no such thing as the White House Communication and Propaganda Office, and Trump didn’t actually promise a $612 stimulus payment to all deserving Americans. The website’s “About” section clearly identifies its content as “satire,” but these types of stories frequently confuse people when they appear out of context on social media.

The report might have successfully duped readers who remember President George W. Bush’s $1.3 trillion tax cut bill in 2001 that led to $300-$600 rebate checks being mailed to “deserving Americans.” Bush also signed the “Stimulus Plan” in 2008, which led to checks of $300-$1,200 being cut to “deserving Americans” to boost economic recovery.

But reports of  President Trump announcing a $612 stimulus payment are nothing more than fake news masquerading as satire.