President-elect Donald Trump he is doing well tariff promiseson Monday saying he plans to impose tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China in an effort to stop the flow of drugs into the country and illegal border crossings.
Trump he posted on his Truth Social platform One of the first executive orders he will sign when he takes office on January 20, 2025 will be to impose a 25% tariff on all products coming into the United States from Mexico and Canada.
“This Tariff will remain in effect until Drugs, especially Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country! Both Mexico and Canada have the absolute right and power to easily solve this long-simmering problem. We hereby demand. they use that, and until they do, it’s time to pay a very high price.” Trump posted.
In another messageTrump said he would impose an additional 10% tariff on China on goods coming into the US, arguing that the country was doing enough to stem the flow of illegal drugs.
President-elect Donald Trump attends a campaign event in Allentown, Pennsylvania on October 29, 2024.
Brendan McDermid/Reuters
“Chinese representatives told me they would impose their maximum penalty, death, on drug dealers caught doing this, but unfortunately they never followed through, and drugs are flowing into our Country, mostly through Mexico, at a rate never seen before,” he said. Trump said.
During his presidential campaign, Trump proposed tariffs of 60% to 100% on Chinese goods, and a 10% to 20% tax on all imports from all US trading partners.
The day before the election, Trump said in a speech in Pittsburgh, “I’m putting tariffs on Mexico. Every damn thing they sell to the United States has to be like a 25% tariff until they stop bringing drugs in.”
Economists widely expect tariffs of this magnitude to increase prices paid by U.S. buyers, as importers typically pass some of the cost of these higher taxes on to consumers.
Trump’s tariffs would cost the average U.S. household about $2,600 a year, according to estimates from the Peterson Institute for International Economics.
Raymond Robertson, professor of business, economics and public policy at Texas A&M University told ABC News Trump’s plan will be less effective because countries know what’s coming.
“It’s likely a play designed to put pressure on our closest trading partners,” Robertson said. “But this is the same playbook as the second period. If you’re on the football field and you call the same play twice, it’s not going to be as effective the second time around.”
Robertson added that countries know this will be “disruptive” and “catastrophic” but “have seen how this game works”. Robertson says our trading partners may seek closer ties with Europe and other countries and rely less on the US, “which means higher prices for us.”
-ABC News’ Max Zahn and Selina Wang contributed to this report.
