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A Project of The Annenberg Public Policy Center

Independent Analyses Contradict Navarro’s $6 Trillion-Plus Tariff Revenue Estimate

Independent Analyses Contradict Navarro’s $6 Trillion-Plus Tariff Revenue Estimate

Before President Donald Trump paused some new tariffs that he unveiled on April 2, several economic groups estimated that tariffs he has announced this year could raise between roughly $2 trillion and more than $4 trillion in federal revenue over a 10-year period. But that’s well short of the $6 trillion or $7 trillion that White House trade adviser Peter Navarro claimed the tariffs would raise to help pay for tax cuts, including an extension of the 2017 tax law.

Trump’s Misleading Tariff Chart

Trump’s Misleading Tariff Chart

In his Rose Garden announcement of sweeping new “reciprocal tariffs,” President Donald Trump held aloft a misleading chart that claimed to give a breakdown of the tariffs other countries charge the U.S. and the corresponding tariff that the U.S. will now impose against those countries.

Trump’s Misleading Claim on Canadian Dairy Tariffs

Trump’s Misleading Claim on Canadian Dairy Tariffs

To support his plan to increase tariffs, President Donald Trump has repeatedly said that the Canadian government charges U.S. farmers a 250% or 270% tariff on dairy products exported to Canada. That’s misleading. There are rates that high on the books, but they would only be charged if U.S. exports exceed predetermined tariff rate quotas, which the dairy exports don’t come close to meeting. 

Trump’s Flawed Claim that Tariffs Made the U.S. Its ‘Richest’

Trump’s Flawed Claim that Tariffs Made the U.S. Its ‘Richest’

In arguing for more tariffs on goods imported to the United States, President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed that the U.S. was its “richest” or “wealthiest” during the late 1800s and early 1900s because of tariffs. In multiple ways, his claim is wrong or misleading.

Trump on U.S. Imports of Oil and Lumber

Trump on U.S. Imports of Oil and Lumber

Days before he ordered, and then paused, new tariffs on U.S. imports from Canada and Mexico, President Donald Trump argued that the U.S. does not need imported products such as crude oil and lumber from those countries. Experts told us it’s not that simple.

FactChecking Trump’s Inaugural Address

FactChecking Trump’s Inaugural Address

In a half-hour inaugural address, newly sworn-in President Donald Trump twisted some facts while painting the last few years under his predecessor, Joe Biden, as a time of “decline” and promising “the golden age of America begins right now.”

Trump’s Agenda: Taxes

Trump’s Agenda: Taxes

In addition to extending the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, one of his signature achievements in his first term, President-elect Donald Trump has proposed a long list of tax cuts, from eliminating taxes on Social Security benefits to lowering the corporate tax rate. We’ll look at Trump’s tax proposals, their cost and what impact they could have on taxpayers.

FactChecking Trump’s ‘Meet the Press’ Interview

FactChecking Trump’s ‘Meet the Press’ Interview

In his first post-election, sit-down broadcast interview, President-elect Donald Trump outlined his priorities for a second term. But in the interview, Trump continued to repeat inaccurate information related to immigration, crime, trade, health care and the election.

Trump’s Agenda: Tariffs

Trump’s Agenda: Tariffs

While campaigning for a second term in office, President-elect Donald Trump declared “tariff” to be his “favorite word” and “the most beautiful word in the dictionary.” We’ll explain how tariffs work, what Trump has proposed and what experts say about it, and what happened during Trump’s first term.

Trump’s Problematic Claims on the Auto Industry

Trump’s Problematic Claims on the Auto Industry

In Michigan, former President Donald Trump has courted voters in the auto industry with false and no-evidence claims about Chinese auto plants in Mexico and auto industry growth under his administration.