Both candidates in the upcoming US presidential election have been hitting the airwaves, with former president Donald Trump laying out a punishing series of tariffs on goods from China and the rest of the world.
Last night, Trump sat down for an interview at the Economic Club of Chicago with Bloomberg’s editor-in-chief John Micklethwait.
In the interview, Trump doubled down on his promise to impose 60% tariffs on imports from China and 10% duties on those from the rest of the world.
The former president called tariffs “the most beautiful word in the dictionary,” saying that the US was being taken advantage of by other countries.
“All you have to do is build your plant in the US, and you’ll have no tariffs.”
He also said he would not allow US Steel to be bought out by Nippon Steel. Current president Joe Biden’s administration blocked the move, citing national security fears.
During the interview, Trump also targeted Mexico’s car exports into the US, saying:
“If I’m going to be president of this country, I’m going to put a 100, 200, 2,000% tariff [on cars from Mexico].”
“They’re not going to sell one car into the US.”
‘Historic significance’
Several economists have criticised Trump’s proposals.
“We are talking about a plan of historic significance: it would be enormous, and the blowback would be even more enormous,” said Douglas A. Irwin, an economist at Dartmouth College, told the Washington Post.
“This would stand way off the charts.”
His opponent, vice president Harris, has previously attacked Trump’s tariff proposals as being a “sales tax on the American people”, saying it would add thousands to the bills of average citizens.
One 2019 study found that the cost of Trump’s tariff package during his term in office cost the country US$7.2bn, or 0.04% of GDP, and hit voters in Republican-voting counties hardest.
Harris
Incumbent president Joe Biden has hit China with tariffs, albeit at a lower rate than Trump’s proposals, while seeking common agreement with Beijing on select issues such as the illegal drug trade.
Harris made her own pitch on Fox News, continuing a media blitz that started last week and saw her go beyond traditional media, talking to radio host Charlamagne Tha God on Tuesday (15 October).
During the interview, the vice president said her own presidency would not be “will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency.”
“Like every new president that comes into office, I will bring my life experiences, my professional experiences, and fresh and new ideas; I represent a new generation of leadership,” Harris said.
State of play
The current polling outlook shows a close race ahead of voting day on 5 November, with Harris narrowly being favoured by most poll aggregators.
FiveThirtyEight currently gives Harris a 53% chance of winning to Trump’s 47%.
Voters are also deciding on the make-up of the Senate and House, with a knife-edge battle between the Democrats and Republicans.
