Stimulus checks delayed after government insists on adding Trump’s name: report

Coronavirus stimulus checks across the country may be delayed after the Treasury Department ordered President Trump’s name to be added to them, the Washington Post reported.

It’s the first time any president’s name will appear on checks mailed directly to Americans, according to the Post. Because of the late-stage change, the checks will be delayed a few days, IRS officials said.

The $1,200 checks will say “President Donald J. Trump” on the left side in the memo section, the Post reported.

“It’s absolutely unprecedented,” Nina Olson, an 18-year IRS vet who stepped down last year, told the Post of putting a president’s name on the checks.

Treasury Department officials told the Post there would be no delay.

Trump had previously asked Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin to let him personally sign the checks, the Post reported. But with laws against such a signature, his name was shifted to the memo section. A civil servant will sign instead.

The checks will be delayed because computer code must now be changed to add Trump’s name, IRS officials told the Post. They said the short delay at the beginning would likely have longer-term effects, too.

For lower-income Americans, the checks are the centerpiece of the $2 trillion stimulus package passed earlier this month to combat the economic impact of COVID-19.

Around 26,000 Americans have died from the disease of late Tuesday night, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins.