Former President Trump on Thursday outlined his economic policies if elected in November, vowing to strengthen many of the policies he prioritized during his first four years in office and reverse many of the actions of the Biden administration.
Speaking to an audience of economists, business leaders and journalists at the Economic Club of New York, Trump called for extended tax cuts, deregulation and tariffs on companies that outsource jobs or import products.
Here are five takeaways from his speech:
Further tariffs and tax cuts
President Trump has suggested his second term could be similar to his first when it comes to taxes and tariffs.
The former president said he would push to extend the personal tax cuts enacted in 2017 that expire in 2025. He also said he would push to cut the corporate tax rate even further than in 2017 law, from 21% to 15%, which would require congressional action.
President Trump has also made it clear that he will aggressively use tariffs to target companies that outsource jobs or don't manufacture their products in the U.S. The use of tariffs has been particularly controversial because: Economists warnIt will be a tax on consumers, which will lead to higher prices.
But Trump argued Thursday that tariffs would encourage companies to locate in the United States because they risk facing “significant tariffs” if they move production overseas.
“Let's be honest, a lot of the people who are against tariffs work for other countries in some way and have huge amounts of lobbying and other funding, because what they're saying doesn't make sense,” he said.
Goldman Sachs said in a report this week that a Trump administration would see a lower gross domestic product than a Vice President Harris administration, largely because of Trump's plans to raise import tariffs. The Trump campaign dismissed the Goldman Sachs forecast on Thursday as partisan.
Musk's Government Efficiency Commission
One of the specific proposals in Trump's speech was the creation of a government efficiency commission, an idea first proposed to the former president by his billionaire ally Elon Musk.
“I will establish a Government Efficiency Commission tasked with completing a full financial and performance audit of the Federal Government and recommending fundamental reforms,” Trump said.
He added that Musk, who also heads Tesla and SpaceX and owns social platform X, would head the committee if he agreed.
“If given the opportunity, I would love to serve America,” Musk wrote in a post on X on Thursday. “No salary, title or recognition needed.”
Musk raised the idea during a conversation with President Trump that aired on X last month, suggesting such a committee could study the national debt and how Congress could reassess spending.
A budget modeling analysis by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania published last month estimated that the impact of the Trump administration's economic policies could increase the national budget deficit by more than $4 trillion over 10 years.
Repeal of Biden's signature law
Trump told a crowd in New York that a victory for him in November would put the Biden administration's signature achievement at risk.
The former president said he would “revoke all unspent funds” from the $740 billion Anti-Inflation Act of 2022, which passed with only Democratic votes.
The law allowed Medicare to negotiate prices for some drugs, boosted health insurance subsidies, encouraged environmentally friendly practices like the use of solar panels and electric cars, and allocated billions of dollars to the IRS to crack down on wealthy individuals and corporations that evade tax laws.
But President Trump and other Republicans in Congress have sharply criticized the law, arguing it has led to higher prices for food, energy and other goods.
Lifting environmental regulations
As he did during the 2016 campaign, Trump told the crowd he would aggressively roll back regulations if elected in November.
He promised to repeal 10 regulations for every new one introduced.
More specifically, he has signaled his intention to roll back a series of Biden administration regulations aimed at curbing pollution and fighting climate change.
“I'm going to end Kamala Harris' anti-energy campaign and implement an agenda of energy abundance, energy independence and energy dominance,” Trump said, vowing to open up more land for drilling.
The former president said he would “cut through all the red tape” to approve drilling, pipelines, refineries, power plants and nuclear reactors, arguing that this would significantly lower energy prices.
Trump complained that the United States has large reserves of rare minerals used to make certain products, but environmental regulations mean they cannot be accessed.
The former president also vowed to roll back Biden administration regulations aimed at cutting global-warming emissions and toxic pollutants from power plants.
The Biden administration has imposed some limits on drilling but approved other projects. Domestic oil production is expected to hit a record high this year.
Immigration crackdown positioned as economic proposal
Trump mentioned immigration multiple times in his speech, suggesting that he and his campaign view the two issues as intertwined.
The former president said immigrants coming across the southern border are a serious threat to American jobs and wealth.
“African-American and Hispanic-American jobs are under great threat from the invasion that is happening at our border,” President Trump said.
He repeatedlyFalse claims100% of the jobs created under the Biden administration have gone to immigrants.
President Trump said he would ask Congress to pass a bill to ban all taxpayer-funded benefits for immigrants who enter the country illegally.
The former president has repeatedly vowed to carry out mass deportations if elected, and has said his plan would rely heavily on the cooperation of local police officers.
