Bedminster, NJ— In a new Agenda47 video, President Donald J. Trump announced his plan to return jobs and wealth to the United States, launch an economic boom that will lift our middle class, and eliminate our dependence on China and other countries, known as the “Trump Reciprocal Trade Act.”
“Under the Trump Reciprocal Trade Act, other countries will have two choices—they’ll get rid of their tariffs on us, or they will pay us hundreds of billions of dollars, and the United States will make an absolute FORTUNE,” President Trump said.
“If India, China, or any other country hits us with a 100 or 200 percent tariff on American-made goods, we will hit them with the same exact tariff. In other words, 100 percent is 100 percent. If they charge US, we charge THEM—an eye for an eye, a tariff for a tariff, same exact amount.”
PRESIDENT TRUMP’S PLAN TO ENSURE RECIPROCAL AND FAIR TRADE
PRESIDENT TRUMP WILL WORK WITH CONGRESS TO PASS THE TRUMP RECIPROCAL TRADE ACT:
– As one of his top economic priorities, President Trump will stop the flow of American jobs overseas by passing the Trump Reciprocal Trade Act.
– Under the landmark legislation, if any foreign country imposes a tariff on American-made goods that is higher than the tariff imposed by the U.S., President Trump will have the authority to impose a reciprocal tariff on that country’s goods.
– To ensure fairness, the Act will empower President Trump to negotiate the reduction of tariffs on foreign goods if foreign countries agree to reduce their tariffs on American goods.
– The Trump Reciprocal Trade Act will put AMERICA FIRST and continue President Trump’s unparalleled trade success that reduced America’s trade deficit, grew wages, and created more than half a million new manufacturing jobs.
– President Trump’s landmark legislation advances the views of 91 percent of conservatives and even 75 percent of Democrats, who support placing reciprocal tariffs on foreign imports to protect American workers.
THE TRUMP RECIPROCAL TRADE ACT WILL RESTORE FAIRNESS TO TRADE, BOOSTING AMERICAN INDUSTRY:
– The Trump Reciprocal Trade Act has a wealth of precedent in American history.
– America historically imposed tariffs on over 95 percent of all imports, with an average tariff of 37 percent on imports during America’s economic climb between 1816 and 1947.
– For decades, the U.S. government received over 80% of its revenue through tariffs on foreign goods, instead of taxes on Americans.
– However, U.S. tariffs are now among the lowest in the world, making America the most import-pressured country in the world.
– The current China tariff average is 341 percent higher than the United States, and the European Union tariff average is 50 percent higher than the U.S. The world average tariff rate is more than twice that of the U.S.
– For example, food items like cereals or other preparatory goods are tariffed at 32.9 percent by India, 19.5 percent by China, and only 3.1 percent by the U.S. India applies a tariff of 25.3 percent on transportation equipment, while the U.S. only tariffs those goods at 2.9 percent.
– When the U.S. set low tariffs on foreign goods, foreign countries generally did not reciprocate, allowing them to flood the American market with cheap goods while keeping high, protective tariffs on their own markets.
– These unfair and unbalanced trade policies have hurt American businesses which cannot compete against their tariff-protected foreign rivals. The result has been a decrease in demand for U.S. domestic production, leading to a loss of manufacturing jobs and lower wages.
– President Trump’s return to common sense, reciprocal trade protections under the Trump Reciprocal Trade Act will strengthen industry in the United States.
– Matching the tariff practices of our foreign rivals will help protect American jobs, end our reliance on foreign competitors, and generate hundreds of billions of dollars in government revenue from foreign companies.
JOE BIDEN’S “AMERICA LAST” TRADE POLICIES HAVE GUTTED AMERICAN JOBS AND INDUSTRY:
– While President Trump plans to tax foreign rivals, Joe Biden stands by and does nothing while our foreign rivals tax American industry.
– Since the moment he took office, Joe Biden’s globalist trade policies skyrocketed the deficit, sending jobs and hundreds of billions of dollars overseas.
– Last year, the U.S. trade deficit increased to nearly $1 trillion, its highest point ever.
– The agricultural deficit shot up to more than $2 billion last year and is projected to increase to a record $14.5 billion in 2023.
– Under Joe Biden, the trade deficit with China has risen almost 10 percent to $383 billion just last year.
– The results of Joe Biden’s increases in the U.S. trade deficit are lower wages and fewer jobs for American workers.
– Real wages have sharply declined over 28 months under Biden’s weak trade policies that flood the American market with cheap foreign goods produced by cheap foreign labor.
– The $4 trillion in foreign imports in 2022 under Biden was the highest EVER.
– President Trump’s policies shrank the trade deficit with China during his administration.
THE TRUMP RECIPROCAL TRADE ACT IS AN ADDITIONAL TOOL, ALONG WITH UNIVERSAL BASELINE TARIFFS, TO SHRINK THE TRADE DEFICIT AND BRING BACK AMERICAN JOBS AND WEALTH:
– President Trump previously announced a plan to replace the Biden system of punishing domestic producers and rewarding outsourcers with a new system that rewards domestic production while taxing foreign companies.
– Rather than raising taxes on American producers, President Trump will impose tariffs on FOREIGN producers through a system of universal baseline tariffs on most imported goods.
– Higher tariffs will increase incrementally if other countries manipulate their currency or otherwise engage in unfair trading practices.
– As tariffs on foreign countries go up, taxes on American workers, families, and businesses can come down.
– Raising tariffs on foreign producers while lowering taxes for domestic producers will help keep jobs and wealth in the United States.
– Higher tariffs create millions of new jobs, increase real household income, boost GDP, increase domestic manufacturing output, and generate hundreds of billions of dollars in new government revenue.
– President Trump’s universal baseline tariffs will restore a level playing field for American businesses worldwide.
– President Trump will also REVOKE China’s Most Favored Nation trade status. It is long past time China stops getting preferential treatment as they undermine American national security interests around the world.
– Under President Trump’s leadership, the U.S. will once again become a manufacturing powerhouse and attain economic independence from China.
TRANSCRIPT
Joe Biden has run up record trade deficits, also known as losses, higher than any president in history by far. These gaping wounds are costing our country countless jobs and trillions and trillions of dollars in wealth.
One of my top economic priorities will be to stem this bleeding and put American workers on a level playing field.
It’s about time. And I must say, I did it three years ago, and they were doing great, but that’s been blown out the window by the Biden Administration.
But to that end, I will pass landmark legislation that will be known as the Trump Reciprocal Trade Act.
If India, China, or any other country hits us with a 100 or 200 percent tariff on American-made goods, we will hit them with the same exact tariff. In other words, 100 percent is 100 percent. If they charge US, we charge THEM—an eye for an eye, a tariff for a tariff, same exact amount.
One thing is going to happen: probably they drop the tariff, but if they don’t, that’s okay. We’ll take in plenty of money.
Under the Trump Reciprocal Trade Act, other countries will have two choices—they’ll get rid of their tariffs on us, or they will pay us hundreds of billions of dollars, and the United States will make an absolute FORTUNE. There will be no more unilateral economic surrender like we’ve done for many many decades.
This will especially help our great farmers in Iowa and other Agricultural states, and it will help our manufactures all across the nation. We will be knocking down barriers to American farm products, American dairy products, steel—just about everything you can think of. From all around the world they take advantage of us, but no more.
We must have FAIRNESS and RECIPROCITY.
That’s the word—reciprocity. They do it to us; we do it to them.
This will be a key part of our strategy to return jobs and wealth to the United States and launch an economic boom that will lift up our middle class and eliminate our dependence on China and other countries. And it is something that has been waiting to happen for a long time.
We have been the whipping post for everyone else. We have been a country that was disrespected on trade, and frankly, disrespected on just about everything. No more.
The Trump Reciprocal Trade Act.
Thank you.
