President Trump suggested the use of a “chicken tax” on cars is a possibility after General Motors announced thousands of job cuts and the the shuttering of several North American facilities to focus attention on emissions-free and self-driving vehicles.
In a pair of tweets Wednesday morning, the president reasoned that a 25 percent tariff on light truck imports, known as a “chicken tax” has insulated the truck business in the U.S., and suggested it could do the same for cars.
“The reason that the small truck business in the U.S. is such a go to favorite is that, for many years, Tariffs of 25% have been put on small trucks coming into our country,” Trump said. “It is called the ‘chicken tax.’ If we did that with cars coming in, many more cars would be built here and G.M. would not be closing their plants in Ohio, Michigan & Maryland. Get smart Congress.
Trump also pushed Congress to “get smart” on global competition, but said ultimately it may be on him to take action.
“Also, the countries that send us cars have taken advantage of the U.S. for decades,” he added. “The President has great power on this issue – Because of the G.M. event, it is being studied now!”
General Motors announced on Monday that it will cut 15 percent of its salaried workforce and stop production in several North American plants to reduce costs.
On Tuesday, Trump threatened to cut General Motors’ federal subsidies.
“General Motors made a big China bet years ago when they built plants there (and in Mexico) – don’t think that bet is going to pay off. I am here to protect America’s Workers!” he wrote in a Twitter post.
