Trump set to whack US working class with historic $3,000 tax hike
Trump set to whack US working class with historic $3,000 tax hike
There is an old saying in Washington that if you want to understand politicians, look at what they do, not what they say. On that front there is no ambiguity. The Republican president is imposing big new taxes, and he is doing it in a way that does not require congressional approval.
Summary
Donald Trump is poised to impose massive import tariffs on goods from Canada, Mexico, and China, effectively raising taxes on U.S. households by an estimated $3,000 annually.
Unlike past tax increases that targeted the wealthy, these tariffs disproportionately impact low- and middle-income workers.
While Trump claims the measures address immigration and fentanyl concerns, experts argue they serve as a revenue source to offset tax cuts for the rich.
Critics contend that Trump's tariffs lack a clear industrial strategy and primarily burden American consumers.
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Calling it a "tax increase" when it's not is kind of infuriating because it just muddies the conversation. Comparing it to a tax increase is fine but saying it's "effectively" one is worse than useless - it either confuses people, gives them the wrong idea, or gives them an easy out to say it's bullshit.
I hate when my side does stuff like this.
You’re saying a tariff doesn’t count as a tax because it gets hidden in the final price of goods?
Maybe corporate America will tack on a “tariff fee” like those bs restaurant service fees to tell consumers it’s not their fault.
I'm saying people are going to look for this tax increase they heard about and not find it on their paycheck.
Feel free to tell me the downside of being accurate here.
It would be accurate to call a tariff what it is: a tax. Maybe the downside is ostrich-heads won’t be able to bury their heads in the sand and pretend it’s not a tax.
People are very used to paying taxes that don’t show up on their pay statement. Things like sales tax, property tax.
A tariff is a sales tax, pure and simple. Sales taxes hit lower income people harder than the rich because they have to put a higher percentage of their income into it.
I agree, but framing it like this just gives the other side an opportunity to call bullshit.
Why give them the ammo?
Why craft your message with the primary goal of not angering a bunch of snowflakes who are going to attack you literally no matter what you say. We're up against people that think wearing a tan suit is a newsworthy scandal and electing a rapist is fine. Or do you need me to say "found civilly liable for sexual assault but never criminally convicted of rape"?
Because any rational person is going to immediately assume you're talking about directly raising taxes, not indirectly like this.
Trying to conflate the two makes it appear as though you're trying to trick your audience. It's not a good look and we can be better than that.
No average person says "my taxes went up $3000 this year!" referring to anything other than their income tax.
This is the exact water muddying I mentioned. Call things what they are and explain what they mean.
There is zero downside to explaining it correctly:
"Trump's newest round of tariffs are projected to cost the average citizen $3000 per year"
Same power without the bullshitting. And you don't have someone looking at their paycheck wondering if it's taken effect yet.
Nobody is saying that tariffs are income taxes, but I pay a bunch of taxes each year that are not income taxes. I have sales taxes at stores, property taxes a couple times a year, and hidden ones like gas taxes. Now we are going to pay more import taxes so that the ultra rich don’t have to pay as much capital gains. To call them anything else is lying to yourself.
Tell me how telling people their taxes are going to go up $3000 is better than explaining that the tariffs will cause their yearly goods expenses to go up by the same.
This article is for the layman, not someone who understands tariffs. And instead of explaining that, it says "it's basically the same thing as your taxes going up!"
Tarrifs are a tax, they are going up, and it's a sales tax which are commonly regressive (hit lower income families more).