JD Vance Rejects Claim That Trump's Tariffs Would Be A Tax On Americans. Disagrees Tariffs Cost Americans Nearly $80 Billion In New Taxes Under Trump

Senator JD Vance, Donald Trump's pick for vice president, recently appeared on NBC's “Meet the Press” to defend the former president's tariff policies, among other things, pushing back against criticism that these tariffs amount to a heavy tax on American consumers.

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During the interview, host Kristen Welker raised concerns that the tariffs imposed during Trump's first term cost Americans nearly $80 billion, as companies passed on the extra costs to consumers through higher prices for imported goods. Vance, however, firmly rejected this idea, arguing that the real target of the tariffs wasn't American consumers but foreign importers who rely on cheap labor to undercut U.S. workers.

"What it really does is it penalizes importers from bringing goods outside the country, into the country," Vance said. "I think that's just a necessary thing. We know that China and a number of other countries are using, effectively, slave labor to undercut the wages of American workers. Donald Trump thinks that has to stop."

However, Vance’s defense of Trump’s tariffs isn’t without opposition. Many economists and trade experts argue that tariffs, in reality, do impose significant costs on American consumers. Studies have shown that the tariffs enacted by Trump effectively acted as a tax on American households, raising the prices of imported goods, including everyday essentials like food, appliances and clothing. 

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Vance acknowledged that some economists believe tariffs lead to higher prices for consumers, but he argued that this view overlooks the positive effects of these policies. He suggested that making imports more expensive encourages companies to manufacture goods domestically, which, in turn, creates jobs and boosts wages.

"Anything that you lose on the tariff from the perspective of the consumer, you gain in higher wages, so you're ultimately much better off," Vance explained. "You have more take-home pay, you have better jobs."

Vance also pointed to the success of Trump's tariff strategy during his presidency, noting that even though tariffs were in place, inflation remained low. According to Vance, these outcomes contradict the idea that tariffs are harmful to the economy. "Inflation never really ticked above 2% his entire administration," Vance said. 

He also criticized Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats for not supporting tariffs on companies that exploit cheap labor in countries like China. Vance argued that without such measures, American workers would continue to suffer.

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