Norquist critical of Trump’s tariff proposal

[Vinee]

If Donald Trump is serious about seeking the Republican nomination for president, he may find himself running with little support from the party’s powerful economic conservatives.

Trump has been a vocal advocate in recent weeks for a 25 percent tariff on all Chinese imports, a proposal that influential conservative activist Grover Norquist calls “the worst kind of pandering.”

“The tariffs or the tax increases are what politicians call for when they’re expressing contempt for the American people’s intelligence,” Norquist, the founder of Americans for Tax Reform, told The Daily Caller. “Tariffs are not paid by Chinese people, they are paid by American people who buy Chinese products. It would raise the costs of everything you buy in the store. Most of those things you by from China and because you raised the price of one competitor, everybody else gets to raise their prices too.”

Supporters of The Donald point to his vast fortune and business successes as evidence that he could revitalize the economy. Norquist is skeptical. “He builds buildings,” Norquist says. “You don’t import buildings and you don’t — where’s the insight that you get on international trade from building a building in New York?”

http://dailycaller.com/2011/02/14/norquist-critical-of-trumps-tariff-proposal/

________________________________________________________________________________________________________




I'm just curious if there's any kind of consensus view on Trump's 25% tariff on Chinese imports idea. I think it would hurt at first but would quickly rebuild the economy especially if it were combined with some business friendly legislation that truly encouraged entrepreneurship. An example of such legislation would be the elimination of vender's licenses and restrictions on how and where goods may be sold.