Trump’s economic plan to impose huge tariffs is a “disaster”

Outgoing US President Joe Biden on Tuesday described the economic plans of his successor, Donald Trump, as a “disaster,” praising the legacy of his Democratic administration after four years in the White House.
Biden said that Trump’s threat to impose huge tariffs on imports is a “huge mistake” and urged Republicans to abandon the proposed tax cuts.

Trump won the presidential election on November 5, after building a large part of his election campaign on American voters’ anger at the high costs of living under Democratic rule.

Trump’s economic plan

Biden said: “I pray to God that the president-elect will get rid of the 2025 project. I think it will be an economic disaster for us and the region,” referring to a conservative-oriented draft by Republican Trump, who will return to the White House for a second term in early 2025.
Biden added that American consumers will pay the price for the tariffs that Trump pledged to impose on the two neighboring countries, Mexico and Canada, and on China. These three countries are at the forefront of the United States’ trading partners.

“I think this approach is a big mistake,” Biden continued.

Biden’s speech

The White House described Biden’s speech as “an important speech about his economic legacy,” and it comes less than six weeks before the end of the 82-year-old president’s term.
Biden withdrew from the electoral race in July, due to concerns related to his advanced age. His running mate, Kamala Harris, replaced him as the Democratic Party’s nominee, and Trump easily defeated her in the November elections.

While Trump is officially inaugurated on January 20, he has begun to act as a shadow president, making statements about the economy and foreign policy, and meeting with international leaders.

Tax cuts

Since the election, Biden has remained reticent in his public statements, but he defended his record before a group of economists.

He compared his “economic evidence” to what he described as “Trump’s failed promise,” which includes tax cuts for the wealthy to boost income in all areas.
Biden also praised achievements, including the recovery of the US economy after the Covid pandemic, and huge investments in green technology and industry.

The strongest economy

He said, “President-elect Trump has the strongest economy in modern history, and the world envies us.”

Biden concluded his speech by emphasizing the importance of the American leadership role in a turbulent world, in what appeared to be a hint by Trump’s reiteration of his intention to take more isolationist positions.
He said: “If we are not the ones leading the world, then what country is leading the world? Who brings Europe together?”