'Like hiring someone to rob me': Trump ridiculed over new 'rebate' proposal

President Donald Trump says he is considering issuing rebate checks to consumers from the tariffs the federal government has collected. Rebates are a partial refund for the overpayment of taxes, or if there is a surplus.

Trump made his remarks on Friday before heading to Scotland for a five-day trip to visit his golf courses. Both Trump and his administration have insisted that consumers do not pay the tariffs, but importers and retailers often end up passing most or all of the additional costs onto the end purchaser in the form of higher prices. Peter Navarro, Senior Counselor to the President for Trade and Manufacturing, has gone as far as to claim that tariffs are tax cuts.

“We have so much money coming in,” from the collection of tariffs, Trump told reporters on Friday, “we’re thinking about a little rebate, but the big thing we want to do is pay down debt, but we’re thinking about a rebate.”

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The President went on to describe the possible rebates as being “for people of a certain income level,” which he did not define.

Responding to Trump’s remarks, U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) quickly announced he will propose legislation to give “every working person” in America a rebate.

“Rebates would return to consumers some of the higher prices they’ve paid as a result of those tariffs — but could also raise the specter of inflation, similar to previous rounds of government stimulus,” Axios warned.

“While customs duties are giving a boost to US revenues and Trump regularly casts tariffs as being paid by foreign trading partners,” Bloomberg added, “data show those increases are being shouldered by American businesses and consumers.”

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NBC News senior national politics reporter Jonathan Allen mocked Senator Hawley’s proposal:

“The suggested policy is to raise prices by taxing imports and then subsidize taxpayers with a rebate — like hiring someone to rob me and then donating a little of the $ back to me. Could just skip tariffs, but this way Big Brother gets a cut and pols claim hero status.”

Congressional reporter Jamie Dupree added: “The current estimate of extra tax revenue from tariffs will still leave the deficits under Trump at over $1.5 trillion per year, in other words, not close to balance.”

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