WASHINGTON — Vice President Kamala Harris called former President Donald Trump's tariff proposals "a sales tax on the American people" in an interview with MSNBC’s Stephanie Ruhle.
President Joe Biden has also backed certain tariffs and done little to roll back ones Trump put into place while president, but Harris emphasized that tariffs should not be implemented across all imports — as Trump has said he would do if he returns to the White House.
"You don't just throw around the idea of just tariffs across the board, and that's part of the problem with Donald Trump," Harris said.
"I say this in all sincerity, he's just not very serious about how he thinks about some of these issues," she continued. "And one must be serious and have a plan, and a real plan that's not just about some talking point ending in an exclamation at a political rally, but actually putting the thought into what will be the return on the investment, what will be the economic impact on everyday people."
During the debate this month, Trump said he would implement a 10% tariff on all imported goods and a 60% tariff on goods from China.
"Other countries are going to finally, after 75 years, pay us back for all that we’ve done for the world, and the tariff will be substantial," Trump had said during the debate.
The questions came during Harris' first one-on-one interview with a national network since she became the Democratic nominee. Trump has criticized her for not doing more sit-down interviews.
Harris also said in the interview that corporate taxes would have to be raised to fund some of her policies tackling affordability for child care and housing.
"We're going to have to raise corporate taxes," she said.
"We're going to have to make sure that the biggest corporations and billionaires pay their fair share," she continued. "That's just it. It's about paying their fair share."
Her comments came in response to a question about how she would find the money to fund her proposals if she was unable to raise corporate taxes or Republicans take control of the Senate.
Harris has proposed expanding the child tax credit, creating a tax break for homebuilders and providing a subsidy for first-time homeowners.
The Trump campaign responded to Harris' interview by criticizing her economic record in the Biden administration.
The interview came shortly after Harris' campaign event in Pittsburgh, where she described her economic priorities.
