Former President Donald Trump addresses attendees at a campaign rally at the Johnny Mercer Theatre in Savannah, Georgia on Tuesday. Brandon Bell/Getty Images Hide caption
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SAVANNAH, Ga. — Former President Donald Trump said the economic policies he would implement in his second term would create an environment of “stealing” manufacturing jobs that have moved overseas through tax cuts and tariffs.
In a lengthy speech to about 2,500 enthusiastic supporters at Savannah’s Johnnie Mercer Theatre on Tuesday, Trump outlined his vision for a “manufacturing renaissance” that would bring millions of jobs back to the U.S. from overseas.
“The vision I’m laying out today is not only to stop American companies from going overseas, but under my leadership, we’re going to take other countries’ jobs,” he said. “Have you heard that phrase? Have you heard us take other countries’ jobs? That’s never been stated clearly before. We’re going to take other countries’ factories. There was a real buzz about it four years ago. We’re going to bring thousands of companies and trillions of dollars of wealth back to the good old USA of America.”
President Trump has called for a reduction in corporate tax rates from 21% to 15% for “companies that manufacture products in the United States,” continued to push for “significant tariffs” on imports, and proposed creating special manufacturing zones on federal lands with “ultra-low taxes and regulations for American manufacturers.”
“We’re going to use our resources for our benefit,” Trump said, also touting relaxed environmental regulations on manufacturing. “And once America is clean and environmentally perfect, Americans can manufacture everything we need. The resources are here, they’re on American soil. We have rare earth elements, oil, gas, everything. All we’re missing are smart people to lead this country.”
Trump did not offer details on many of his proposals, but some economists and Republicans have warned that his key policies, such as the expansion of tariffs, risk hurting American consumers through retaliatory tariffs on exports, resulting in higher prices for Americans.
“I’m not a fan of tariffs. Tariffs just raise prices for the American consumer,” Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell told reporters on Tuesday. “I’m a free trade Republican and I remember how many jobs are created by the exports that we do. So I’m not a fan of tariffs.”
The main focus of Trump’s speech was on taxes and manufacturing policy, but like most of his talks, it followed the same themes he normally covers in his campaign speeches.
He called Harris the “tax queen” and said her proposal to tax the super-rich on unrealized investment gains would lead to a financial recession, but also said Harris has “greater cognitive problems” than Biden.
Putin has repeatedly strayed from economic topics, repeating his promise to carry out mass deportations of migrants, detailing Russia’s military history while discussing the Ukraine war (“They defeated Hitler, they defeated Napoleon, that’s how they did it,” he noted), and talking about the two assassination attempts against him this summer.
Notably, Trump did not attack Georgia’s Republican Governor Brian Kemp, instead thanking him for his “great” response after an early August rally in Atlanta that highlighted the rift between Trump and Republican supporters in the state who want to overturn the results of the 2020 election.
But he continued to criticize parts of the electric vehicle industry and the Biden administration’s emissions rules, which some Republicans have called “mandates.” Georgia is quickly becoming the U.S. center for electric vehicle manufacturing, and about 25 miles from Savannah is home to a massive Hyundai factory that’s seeing about $8 billion invested in the largest economic development project in state history.
Trump’s latest visit to Georgia comes as polls show the former president’s best chance of winning is through Georgia, North Carolina and Pennsylvania.
Trump will hold a rally in Pennsylvania on Monday night before heading to North Carolina on Wednesday.
