Refund checks going to millions of Amazon customers under the FTC's 2025 settlement over Prime subscription sign-ups carry a notice that reads, “The enclosed check is the result of a settlement reached by President Trump's Federal Trade Commission (FTC) with Amazon.com,” Politico reported on October 21, 2026. Two former FTC officials said it is the first time an FTC refund has attributed payments to a specific president. “I am not aware of any pre-Trump instance of the communication to the consumer receiving payment mentioning the name of a president,” said Stephen Calkins, the commission's general counsel from 1995 to 1997, who called it “unseemly and unfortunate.” Bill Kovacic, who chaired the FTC under George W. Bush, said the wording is unlikely to shape voters' views but could affect perceptions of the agency in future cases.
The FTC's own refund page refers to the “Trump-Vance FTC,” and an FTC spokesperson said “his FTC is responsible for this historic settlement.” Politico reported the attribution began last November, so it predates the midterm campaign; who drafted the notice is not known. The pattern matches the president's signed letters on $500 health-insurance payments and the branded Medicare checks (see Five Weeks Before the Midterms, Trump Sends $500 Checks and a Signed Letter to 950,000 Obamacare Enrollees, Mostly in Battleground States and Trump Taps a Never-Used Medicare Fund to Send $90 to 20 Million Seniors, With a Letter From Him Due Weeks Before the Midterms).