Trump promises to ‘take other countries’ jobs’ with ‘lowest taxes’

Former President Donald Trump promised Tuesday that if elected, the U.S. will “take other countries’ jobs,” laying out a plan for a “manufacturing renaissance” by offering “the lowest taxes, the lowest energy costs [and] the lowest regulatory burden” to companies that manufacture products in the U.S.

Speaking to a crowd in Savannah, Georgia, Trump previewed a sprawling manufacturing overhaul including special federal zones with “ultra low taxes and regulations,” a “manufacturing ambassador” tasked with convincing major manufacturers to move to America, and massive deregulation — all aimed at “relocating entire industries” into the U.S.

“You will see a mass exodus of manufacturing from China to Pennsylvania, from Korea to North Carolina, from Germany to right here in Georgia,” Trump said.

Economists have been largely skeptical of Trump’s aggressive tariff policies, contending that they will likely be reflected in higher market prices and ultimately absorbed by American consumers. Ahead of Trump’s speech on Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris’ campaign announced that over 400 economists and former officials had endorsed her in an open letter.

Trump promised a 15 percent “made in America tax rate” and said he would implement 100 percent tariffs on cars manufactured in Mexico, amplifying the protectionist policies on which he has run for nearly a decade.

He also pledged to “cut 10 old regulations for every one new regulation,” bragging that he “cut more regulations than any president in history in four years.” He vowed to cease a car electrification mandate “immediately” — though he also gushed about Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who has endorsed and donated heavily to Trump, calling his cars “phenomenal.”

And using broad strokes, Trump said he would “set up special zones of federal land with ultra low taxes and regulations for American producers” and “appoint a manufacturing ambassador whose sole task … will be to go around the world and convince major manufacturers to pack up and move back to America.”

Trump placed specific focus on auto workers, whose industry he said had been “decimated by many decades of incompetent leadership,” by both politicians and leaders at their companies. “I am pinpointing you for greatness,” he said in an appeal to blue-collar voters.

Last month, the United Auto Workers — a union with nearly a million current and retired members, many of whom live in battleground states — endorsed Harris. Trump on Tuesday slammed UAW President Shawn Fain, saying he’s “ought to be ashamed of himself for what he’s done.”

“This new American industrialism will create millions and millions of jobs, massively raise wages for American workers, and make the United States into a manufacturing powerhouse like it used to be many years ago,” Trump said.

The former president also bashed Harris, calling her “grossly incompetent” and threatening that she would “deindustrialize the United States and destroy our country; we will become virtually a banana republic.”

Harris campaign spokesperson Joseph Costello referred POLITICO to a letter he had sent out before Trump’s speech, which characterized the former president’s plan as one that “promises to crush thousands of American manufacturing jobs, send even more jobs to China, and cost middle class families $4,000 a year.”