Joe Rogan Trump interview: abolish income taxes, rely on tariffs

During a three-hour episode of the Joe Rogan experience On Friday evening, the Republican frontrunner criticized companies that relocate their production from the USA to other countries and threatened them with high tariffs.

He added that the word “tariff” was “nicer than 'love'” and said the U.S. could get rich through the right use of tariffs.

“Did you just float the idea of ​​eliminating income taxes and replacing them with tariffs?” Rogan asked. “Are we serious?”

Trump replied: “Yeah, sure, but why not?”

He then again praised William McKinley, who served as president from 1897 until his assassination in 1901, calling him the “Tariff King.”

“We will not let the enemy come in and take our jobs, our factories, our workers and our families unless they pay a heavy price,” Trump added. “And the big price is the tariffs.”

This is not the first time he has hinted at eliminating the income tax. In June, Trump floated the idea that revenue from tariffs could replace federal revenue from income taxes.

And during a Fox News segment at a Bronx barbershop on Monday, Trump was asked whether the U.S. could eliminate all federal taxation, prompting him to praise the policies of the late 19th century.

“There were all tariffs, there was no income tax,” he said. “Now we have income taxes and we have people dying. They pay taxes and they don’t have the money to pay the tax.”

In addition to extending the tax cuts enacted during his presidency, Trump has also announced a series of tax cuts, including taxes on tips, overtime pay and Social Security payments, as well as exemptions for the military, veterans and first responders.

Such talks sparked concern among budget watchdogs, who warned of a ballooning federal deficit. While expansion will occur under either Trump or Kamala Harris, the Penn Wharton Budget Model and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget have said Trump's policies would leave a much larger hole.

As Wall Street begins to price in the growing chances of a Trump victory in November, U.S. bond yields have risen as the Treasury is expected to flood the market with larger auctions to finance growing deficits and higher debt interest payments.

Many economists have now rejected the idea of ​​tariff revenue replacing income tax revenue. Garrett Watson, a senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, told CNBC that Trump's tariffs would generate an estimated $3.8 trillion in revenue over 10 years, just a fraction of the $33 trillion generate individual income taxes.

Trump's plan for blanket tariffs with outsized increases for countries like China would also be largely passed on to American consumers, driving up prices and likely fueling inflation, economists say.

And if other countries respond with tariffs of their own, U.S. exporters would be affected, while a shift away from more expensive imports would weaken the revenue that Trump's tariffs could generate.