Trump ‘border tax’ on the way
President tells CEOs that companies will pay to cut U.S. jobs
President Trump WASHINGTON on Monday pledged to cut regulations by 75% and impose a major “border tax” on goods manufactured abroad and sold in the United States.
Echoing his campaign rhetoric, Trump told business leaders in a breakfast meeting at the White House that businesses spend more time on paperwork complying with government regulations than on making things.
“We want to start making our products again,” Trump said. “If you look at some of the original great people that ran this country, you will see they felt very strongly about that.”
He said the border tax would help discourage companies from firing people in the U.S., making products overseas and then moving them back into the country to sell.
“They’re going to have to pay a border tax — a substantial border tax,” Trump said.
The president said other countries “charge a lot of tax” when American companies try to sell their products there, and he identified China by name.
“You want to sell something into China, it’s very, very hard, in some cases it’s impossible,” Trump said. “So I don’t call that free trade. What we want is fair trade, and we’re going to treat other countries fairly, but they have to treat us fairly.”
The meeting included chief executives from a dozen companies, including Ford, Johnson & Johnson, Lockheed Martin and Dell.
Andrew Liveris, CEO of Dow, said afterward that Trump asked them to come back in 30 days with “a series of actions” that might stimulate manufacturing in the U.S.
Liveris said the group discussed the border tax and who might be helped or hurt by such a move.
Ford CEO Mark Fields said “it was a very, very positive meeting.”
Lockheed Martin CEO Marillyn Hewson said in a statement she was “encouraged by the president’s commitment to reduce barriers to job creation,” including cutting regulations.
“I look forward to continuing to work with President Trump and his team on these important issues,” she said.
Press Secretary Sean Spicer said the meeting was productive and ran longer than expected. He said Trump plans to meet with the group next month and then quarterly after that.
“I think that’s what his focus is going to continue to be,” Spicer said.
“We want to start making our products again. If you look at some of the original great people that ran this country, you will see they felt very strongly about that.” President Trump