WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Donald Trump said on Tuesday he would seek to “take away” manufacturing jobs from foreign countries, including U.S. allies, if he wins the Nov. 5 election by offering incentives to encourage companies to relocate to the United States.
Trump has promised a “manufacturing renaissance” as a centerpiece of his economic plan and said he would offer foreign companies low taxes and little regulation to attract them.
“We’re going to take jobs away from other countries,” Trump said during a speech to supporters in Savannah, Georgia, which has one of the largest U.S. ports and is a hub for auto manufacturing. “We’re going to take their factories away.”
The Republican presidential candidate said voting for him would result in a “mass exodus” of manufacturing from US allies South Korea and Germany, as well as economic rival China.
Trump’s speech, his second major address on the economy this month, comes as he and Vice President Kamala Harris, his Democratic opponent, compete to convince voters in battleground states like Georgia that they will be the best stewards of the U.S. economy.
The high cost of living and employment are the top problems for Americans, according to opinion polls.
According to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Tuesday, Harris has narrowed Trump’s lead on economic issues. When asked which candidate had a better focus on “the economy, unemployment and jobs,” about 43% of voters chose Trump and 41% Harris. Trump held an 11-point lead over Harris on the economy at the end of July.
Harris is scheduled to deliver a major economic speech in the battleground state of Pennsylvania on Wednesday. Some of Harris’ proposals will also broadly aim to help Americans build and maintain their wealth, Reuters reported.
‘SUBSTANTIAL TARIFF’
Trump said during his speech that the planned incentives would be offered only to foreign companies that moved their production to the United States and hired American workers.
“I want German car companies to become American car companies. I want them to build their plants here,” Trump said.
However, companies that do not manufacture their products in the United States would face “a very substantial tariff” when they ship their products to the country, he said.
On Monday, Trump said he would impose a 200% tariff on John Deere (NYSE:) imports into the United States if the farm equipment company moved its production to Mexico as planned.
Preserving and creating American manufacturing jobs by imposing expansive tariffs on friends and foes alike has become a central theme of Trump’s economic message.
While Trump and his allies say trade barriers are necessary to protect American industry, many economists say Trump’s proposals would fuel inflation.
Trump said he would reward U.S.-based manufacturers with tax breaks on research and development costs and the ability to write off heavy machinery costs in the first year.
He reiterated his promise to reduce the corporate tax rate from 21% to 15% for companies that manufacture their products in the United States.
Trump pledged to appoint a global manufacturing ambassador to persuade foreign companies to move to the United States. He also said he would create special low-tax, low-regulation zones on federal lands for U.S.-based manufacturers.
It’s not clear what federal lands would be offered to foreign companies under Trump’s plan, or how such an arrangement would work. If the lands remain in federal hands while foreign companies operate on them, those companies could theoretically be exempt from property taxes.
In recent months, Trump has been announcing new economic policies that his team believes will appeal to working- and middle-class voters, including ending federal taxes on tips and overtime.
Many economists warn that eliminating such taxes will reduce government revenues and blow up the federal deficit.
(This story has been re-archived to remove an extra word in paragraph 1)