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President-elect Donald Trump made tariff policy a central issue throughout his 2024 campaign, with promises to place tariffs between 10 to 20 percent on imported foreign goods. Trump has continued to express his support for tariffs since his sweeping victory in November.
In addition to raising revenue, Trump has used the threat of tariffs to incentivize neighboring countries such as Canada and Mexico to cooperate with the immigration policies of his incoming administration.
In a Truth Social post released on Tuesday, the President-elect expanded on his plans for tariff policy.
“For far too long, we have relied on taxing our Great People using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS),” Trump said. “Through soft and pathetically weak trade agreements, the American Economy has delivered growth and prosperity to the World, while taxing ourselves. It is time for that to change.”
Trump continued with the announcement of a new department to manage the tariffs he plans to implement under his new administration.
“I am today announcing that I will create the EXTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE to collect our Tariffs, Duties, and all Revenue that come from Foreign sources. We will begin charging those that make money off of us with Trade, and they will start paying, FINALLY, their fair share.”
Trump concluded the post by indicating that the creation of the External Revenue Service would be a top priority once the new administration takes office.
“January 20, 2025 will be the birth date of the External Revenue Service. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!” Trump said.
As RSBN previously reported, last week Trump reacted to a recent Washington Post report on Monday that claimed he would not impose tariffs as he had previously vowed.
Trump accused the outlet of spewing “fake news” in a post to his Truth Social profile.
“The story in the Washington Post, quoting so-called anonymous sources, which don’t exist, incorrectly states that my tariff policy will be pared back. That is wrong. The Washington Post knows it’s wrong. It’s just another example of Fake News,” he wrote.
The Post article Trump referred to was written by Jeff Stein, indicating the Trump administration’s plans to change its tariff efforts to enforce increased costs on foreign goods.
“President-elect Donald Trump’s aides are exploring tariff plans that would be applied to every country but only cover critical imports, three people familiar with the matter said — a key shift from his plans during the 2024 presidential campaign,” Stein wrote.