In a surprising move, President Donald Trump and government appointee Elon Musk have floated the idea of distributing $5,000 stimulus checks to American taxpayers. Dubbed the "DOGE Dividends," this initiative aims to compensate citizens for what has been described as the misuse of their tax dollars.

A social media post claiming the U.S. government would issue $5,000 stimulus checks, referred to as "DOGE dividends," on a make-believe date in February appears to have fooled some people online. Anti-Trump PAC The Lincoln Project posted on X,

While it's possible Kentucky taxpayers could get $5,000 DOGE dividend stimulus checks, you might want to hold off on any wild spending sprees just yet.

Pure math makes it unlikely that taxpayers will see any stimulus check, let alone an amount of consequence. Whatever Musk can cut via his DOGE buzzsaw, and that’s debatable, Republicans will want nearly all of that for planned tax cuts. Nonetheless, Trump kept hope alive.

Wondering if you are going to get $5,000 from DOGE? Is it a DOGE dividend check, stimulus check or refund? Here's what to know on Trump's plan.

By definition, a dividend is a distribution of profits by a corporation to its shareholders and a refund is a payment made back to a user that previously paid for something. A stimulus check, on the other hand, is a direct payment to encourage spending and stimulate the economy by putting money directly into the consumers' hands.