Three Major Economic Issues Discussed in the Debate Between Kamala Harris and Trump
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump met for the first time as presidential candidates on Tuesday, and economic issues were a central focus of the debate. Investors and other market watchers closely followed the hour-and-a-half debate in Philadelphia. The economy was the first topic of the night, and both candidates seized the opportunity to restate their positions.
Here are the details of the competition between the candidates on three key economic topics from Tuesday night.
Content:
Tariffs
Republican candidate Donald Trump reinforced his plan on tariffs at the start of the debate.
Trump called for broad tariffs of 20% on all foreign goods and tariffs of 60% or more on Chinese products. Most economists argue that tariffs would hurt the economy more than help, as traders would pass the cost of tariffs on to consumers and give local manufacturers cover to raise prices.
He stated that the tariffs he imposed would generate hundreds of billions of dollars and wouldn’t cost the American people anything, claiming that other countries would finally pay us back, after 75 years, for everything we’ve provided to the world. “The tariffs will be substantial,” he said.
For her part, Harris called the tariffs a “sales tax,” saying they would cost the average person more money. She argued that his trade policies with other countries put the economy at risk during his presidency.
“Well, let’s be clear that the Trump administration led to a trade deficit, one of the highest deficits we’ve seen in America’s history,” Harris said. “He called for trade wars.”
Inflation
Each candidate blamed the other for inflation.
The cost of living has risen sharply since the pandemic, by 21% on average, according to the Consumer Price Index. Meanwhile, wages have grown by more than 23%, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Economists largely agree that inflation was driven by supply chain constraints during the pandemic and, to a lesser extent, relief programs like the stimulus checks issued by former President Trump and his successor, President Joe Biden.
Trump claimed there was “almost no inflation” during his presidency (prices rose by 7.5% during his term) and that inflation has been disastrous for people of all classes. Harris, on the other hand, presented her economic policies and said Trump’s proposals would only worsen inflation.
Student Loans
Harris supported Biden’s student loan debt relief program for federal borrowers, which has allowed $168.5 billion in student debt to be forgiven, while further relief proposals have been blocked or delayed due to legal challenges led by Republicans. These legal challenges have left students in uncertainty as the issues make their way through the courts.
Although student loans were not a major focus of the debate, Trump brought up the Supreme Court’s rejection of Biden’s loan forgiveness plans. Trump said: “So, all these students were ridiculed by this whole thing. How unfair it was, and part of the reason they lost, millions and millions of people had to repay their student loans. They didn’t get them for free.”
Three Major Economic Issues Discussed in the Debate