Trump is courting international companies. But his promises also come with a warning: the Republican is threatening companies that produce outside the USA with high tariffs.
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is using tax promises to attract international companies – including German car manufacturers. “I want German car companies to become American car companies. I want them to build their factories here,” Trump said in a campaign speech in Savannah in the hotly contested state of Georgia.
Trump lures and threatens at the same time
If he wins the presidential election on November 5, he will make an offer to every large company, the 78-year-old Republican continued. “I will offer you the lowest taxes, the lowest energy costs, the lowest regulatory burden and free access to the best and largest market in the world, but only if you make your product here.”
The prerequisite is that the companies manufacture their products in the USA and employ Americans. “If you don’t manufacture your product here, you have to pay a tariff – a very high tariff if you send your product to the United States.” Trump said: “We will manufacture cars at a level you have never seen before. We will manufacture cars bigger, better, more beautiful, stronger and faster than ever before.”
Trump rants about German energy policy
Trump also repeated his claim that Germany had returned to building coal-fired power plants after a failed phase-out of fossil fuels. “Germany tried, but then they replaced Angela with someone else, and that other person is now building a coal-fired power plant in Germany every week,” Trump said, referring to former Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and her successor Olaf Scholz (SPD).
Trump had already made similar comments several times in the past – including during the TV debate against his Democratic opponent Kamala Harris a few weeks ago. The Foreign Office responded to this on Platform X and wrote: “Whether you like it or not: The German energy system is fully functional, with more than 50 percent renewable energy.” Coal and nuclear power plants are being shut down instead of being built. “By 2038 at the latest, coal will be off the grid.”
Source: Stern
