Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas became the latest Republican to come out in favor of cutting a check to the American people amid the coronavirus outbreak.

Andrew Yang based his entire presidential campaign on a long term version of the idea — known as Universal Basic Income or UBI — and often found the pitch being dismissed as fringe.

Cotton's offered an example of giving a family of four $4,000 per month "for the duration of the crisis," which would be $1,000 per American. A spokesman later added that Cotton has not settled on a figure.

Yang, a Democrat, tweeted "I'm pumped about it actually."

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Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., came out in favor for a form of Universal Basic Income (UBI) on Monday, calling on the federal government to cut checks to Americans put out of work by the coronavirus outbreak.

Cotton, 42, joined Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah who called for $1,000 to be put into the hands of Americans.

Romney only called for a one-time injection of $1,000 to Americans, while Cotton's plan is monthly.

He gave an example of $4,000 per month going to any family of four for the duration of the crisis.

A spokesman for Cotton later clarified that the Senator has not settled on a figure.

The payments Cotton is targeting would come from either unemployment insurance or through a tax rebate.

Cotton rolled out his proposal in several tweets and an appearance on Fox News, where he said the House stimulus bill does not go far enough nor fast enough to help families struggling economically.

"There are too many gaps in coverage for the smallest businesses and for medium-sized businesses, and I and a lot of other senators who I've spoken to over the weekend are worried that we're not doing enough to get cash into the hands of affected workers and families quickly," Cotton said.

Although various versions of UBI have been floated in American politics for decades — even in the Nixon administration — former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang brought the issue to the fore during his surprising run.

In response to a satirical tweet from The Daily Show on Romney coming out in favor of giving Americans $1,000, Yang quipped "I'm pumped about it actually."