Donald Trump grabbed headlines this week by proposing a 35% tax on Ford after the auto maker announced plans to move its small car production facilities out of the United States to Mexico. Lost in much of the noise swirling around the dual announcements is something both revelatory and troubling as it relates to El Trumpo’s view of government.
Campaigning in Flint, Michigan, Donald Trump jumped on the Ford announcement. He opined, “We shouldn’t allow it to happen. They’ll make their cars, they’ll employ thousands of people, not from this country, and they’ll sell their car across the border. …”
That first sentence is problematic. But wait. It gets better. On Thursday’s edition of “Fox and Friends,” El Trumpo pontificated:
“States that make cars, they like Donald Trump.”
The Republican nominee added that he can’t believe Ford’s “brazenness,” and it’s something he’s going to deal with when he’s president.
“When they make their car and they think they’re going to get away with this … when that car comes back across the border into our country – that now comes in free – we’re going to charge them a 35 percent tax.”
Let that sink in for a minute. (That’s okay. I’ll wait.) Now. Unpack that comment – and the philosophy behind it. Here are a few questions to get you started:
“We shouldn’t allow it to happen”? Who’s the “we”? We, The Donaldus? We, Congress? We, American consumers? We, The Feds? Is Trump proposing that the federal government actively prohibit a private industry from doing what it thinks is best to promote and protect its bottom line, which incidentally, generally results in lower prices for consumers?
Lost in much of the sound and fury regarding Ford’s announcement is why Ford is moving its small car production to Mexico. Here’s the short version:
In addition to the North American Free Trade Agreement, automakers are also drawn to Mexico because of its lower wages, trade agreements with 44 other countries, a robust rail and shipping infrastructure and a workforce that has proven it can make high-quality cars. (Emphasis added.)
Reports the Detroit Free Press, CEO “Mark Fields told investors the move is part of plans to make production simpler and less expensive.” (Emphasis added.)
If you self-identify as a free market capitalist, Trump’s rhetoric on this score should give you cause for pause. While a 35% tax on an auto maker for ostensibly moving jobs out of the country may appeal to the red meat/tin foil hat crowd, one need invest but a nano-second to see that Trump’s tax proposal is punitive. His proposal essentially punishes a private business for attempting to cut costs and boost production.
Is this what we want, America? The Feds choosing industry winners and losers over the consumer? Or the free market?
Don’t forget this kicker:
Ford isn’t the first automaker to move small car production out of the U.S. Mexico has become an auto production Mecca for new industry investment, surpassing Canada in annual automotive production. …
Fields’ announcement wasn’t much of a surprise. Ford said in April it would invest $1.6 billion to build a new plant in Mexico and create 2,800 jobs so it can build small cars there. Ford also said in 2015 that it planned to move production of its Ford Focus and C-Max hybrids cars from a plant in Wayne, Mich., to another country by 2018..
If this issue is that near and dear to The Donald’s heart, where was he in April? As for Trump’s punitive tax proposal via the heavy hand of Big Government, how is his approach any different than your average Democrat’s? (There’s also that pesky Big Daddy Government child care plan that out-Democrats Democrats. But who’s counting?)
The core issue related to Ford isn’t how government can punish businesses for trying to boost their bottom line. It’s why are auto makers moving out of the U.S.? Hint: Contrary to the endless nattering of Sen. Santa Claus and Career Corruptocrat Clinton on the topic, companies don’t move facilities or jobs out of the country because companies are inherently evil. They do it because the cost of business is less and the return on shareholder investment is more! Hello?
So, instead of puni$hing industries trying to improve their bottom line, here’s an idea: Revise the corporate tax structure to make it more fiscally attractive to do business in the States. Eliminate onerous and unnecessary regulation. Cut redundant, useless red tape. Reduce rapacious union demands. Dollars to donuts, those facilities and jobs will come running back to their Uncle Sam.
It’s not that hard. Donald, are you taking notes?
Photo: Wikipedia