WILLIAM BRANGHAM: You may have heard in# the last couple of weeks about these new## savings and investment accounts for kids known# as Trump Accounts.

They recently got a big boost## from a philanthropic donation that's among the# largest ever delivered directly to Americans.

The accounts are now available and the accounts# are first expected to open next May.

And the## question is, can they deliver the benefits# over the long haul that are being promoted?

Our economics correspondent, Paul# Solman, dug into that question.

DONALD TRUMP, President of the United# States: Trump Accounts will be the first,## I guess you could say, real trust# funds for every American child.

PAUL SOLMAN: To which tech# billionaire Michael Dell added: MICHAEL DELL, CEO, Dell: We believe# the smartest investment that we can## make is an investment in children.

PAUL SOLMAN: So what exactly are## these so-called Trump Accounts?

Part of# this year's One Big Beautiful Bill Act,## they're tax-advantaged savings accounts available# for every American child up to the age of 18,## and parents can put in up to $5,000 annually.

For kids born between 2025 and 2028,# Uncle Sam salts away $1,000 no matter## what parents do.

And all parents have to# do is opt in through a tax form.

Moreover,## other philanthropists, employers and states# are invited to add to the accounts as well.

Susan and husband Michael Dell are the first## philanthropic contributors of# many, Brad Gerstner thinks.

BRAD GERSTNER, Entrepreneur:# Moms and dads adding five,## 10 bucks a week, kids saving a little money in# the summertime.

Philanthro.. states like the state of Texas have said# they're going to add $1,000 to these accounts.

PAUL SOLMAN: Silicon Valley entrepreneur# Brad Gerstner helped make the idea a reality.

BRAD GERSTNER: The objective here is to get# the 70 percent Americans who feel left out## and left behind by capitalism into the game,# to make everybody a capitalist from birth,## sharing in the great upside# of the American economy.

WOMAN: U.S.

savings bonds,# now watch how they grow.

PAUL SOLMAN: Now, putting money# away for a kid was pretty common## back when folks like me and Teresa# Ghilarducci were babes in the woods.

TERESA GHILARDUCCI, Economist:# I used my own example of what## happened when my grandmother# gave me a little baby bond.

PAUL SOLMAN: She eventually became a prominent# economist, a left-wing one, who's long promoted## something like government trust funds from# birth.

She even wrote a proposal for them.

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: Along with Kevin Hassett,## who's on the other side of# me on the political spectrum.

PAUL SOLMAN: Kevin Hassett, President# Trump's top economic adviser.

Given## her politics, how could she pair up with him?

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: We came# together as economists,## and we know that wealth gives# people security and power.

PAUL SOLMAN: She and Hassett,# despite their different politics,## have now been meeting with Brad Gerstner.

That comes as no surprise to# early-wealth-building expert Ray Boshara.

RAY BOSHARA, Aspen Institute: I have been# working on this idea for 20 years and it's## been bipartisan over those 20 years.

It's# important to remember that the bottom half## of the population owns only 2.5 percent of the# nation's wealth and only 1 percent of stocks## and bonds.

We have a long way to go to build# wealth for the bottom half of the population.

Trump Accounts, designed properly, can do that.

PAUL SOLMAN: Designed properly.

But that's only# the first problem, says policy expert Amy Matsui.

AMY MATSUI, National Women's Law Center: We# already have extremely significant wealth## gaps by income, by race, by gender.

And# the way that this policy is structured,## it's not going to narrow them.

It# has the potential to widen them.

PAUL SOLMAN: How so?

AMY MATSUI: Because the practical .. that are very well off will benefit# much more than anybody in the bottom## 90 percent.

Most families will not be able to# contribute the $5,000 for the tax advantage.

A family who's been able to steadily# contribute the maximum would have almost## $200,000 in assets.

And, in contrast, a# family that has the $1,000 and has the## 6 percent rate of return may have something# more along the lines of $2,000 or $3,000.

PAUL SOLMAN: But Teresa# Ghilarducci remains hopeful.

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: The Trump# Accounts surely can be restructured.

PAUL SOLMAN: But here's a# real question: Will they be?

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: The technocrats around# populist policies would absolutely endorse## a tweak of these accounts so they don't just# serve the top 1 percent or top 10 percent.

PAUL SOLMAN: Her tweak of choice, eliminates# tax advantage for families earning over## $250,000 per year to make the program# more progressive.

She expects Brad## Gerstner will be sympathetic.# And to listen to him, he may be.

BRAD GERSTNER: I started this when my oldest# child was 13 years old coming out of COVID-19,## 2021.

And I showed them the custodial accounts# that I had opened at birth and added to over the## years.

And they had compounded into a fair# bit of money.

And my oldest son, Lincoln,## said to me: "Dad, this is incredible.

But what# about all the other kids who don't have these?"

And that really was the conversation around## our dinner table that led to# the birth of Invest America.

PAUL SOLMAN: And now here's another problem,## a teenager and money.

What happens when he or# she turns 18 and suddenly there's a windfall?

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: I used to be a Boy Scout# counselor for the Personal Finance Merit Badge.## And I talked to many teenage boys over the years# about their finances.

I bet that 90 percent of## the teenagers that you talk to will say that# they would buy a car or somehow fix their car.

PAUL SOLMAN: What did she# do with the grandma bond?

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: The bond that my grandmother# gave me was cashed in to pay our back rent.

BRAD GERSTNER: As a father of a 17-year-old and# a 14-year-old, I think about that all the time.

PAUL SOLMAN: And so the new law tries# to address the problem, he says.

BRAD GERSTNER: At 18, kids can use up# to 25 percent of this to buy a home,## start a business, go to college.

If they# don't use the money for that purpose,## it automatically rolls into an IRA and is subject# to the IRA rules.

So, yes, you can take it out,## but it will be subject to a stiff penalty# if you take it out at that point in time.

PAUL SOLMAN: But college?

That# isn't for most Americans, right?

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: Two-thirds of people# don't go to college.

And so if they take## the money out to buy a car, they have to pay a# penalty.

So you're actually penalizing people## who don't go right from high school to# college.

And so that has to be changed.

BRAD GERSTNER: They can use this money# to go to a trade school.

They can use## this money to study a profession that# isn't a typical four-year education,## community college, to start a small business.

PAUL SOLMAN: OK, but what about# this potential final snag?

AMY MATSUI: Trust in government# agencies is pretty low.

And for## families who don't have a lot of financial# literacy or a portfolio of their own,## they may be unwilling or reluctant to take# the steps to open accounts for their children,## even if they could receive that $1,000# of seed money from the government.

PAUL SOLMAN: Brad Gerstner says# he's keenly aware of the problem.

BRAD GERSTNER: Failure for me would be if we had# a bunch of accounts that were not claimed by the## bottom third of the economic ladder.

We have# to make sure that we make it seamless for these## people to know about the accounts, to get excited# about the accounts and to claim the accounts.

PAUL SOLMAN: So what's the bottom line right# now?

Pitfalls galore.

But these accounts are,## says longtime proponent Ray Boshara: RAY BOSHARA: The down payment on a big idea# that can and should be improved over time.## And it's important to look at history here.# Social Security, one of our most successful## social policies, started out largely# excluding women and minorities.

But,## today, it's one of the most inclusive,# successful programs that we have.

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: These Trump Accounts,# since they are completely wide open for## an 18-year-old to spend, will not achieve# the goals that right now President Trump## and Michael and Susan Dell say they# want it to achieve.

It needs reform.

PAUL SOLMAN: But better than nothing?

TERESA GHILARDUCCI: Better than nothing.

PAUL SOLMAN: And if reforms do happen# in myriad ways and if money pours in## from myriad sources, potentially much better.

For the "PBS News Hour," Paul Solman.