- Donald Trump has promised to give American car buyers tax breaks, but only if they purchase a vehicle made in the US.
- Cars built in Europe or Asia won’t be eligible for aid, though cars built in the US by foreign-owned automakers likely will be.
- Trump thinks allowing buyers to deduct their car loan interest from their federal tax bill will boost domestic vehicle production.
Kamala Harris has earned the backing of the United Auto Workers union in her bid to be America’s first female president, but her rival Donald Trump is attempting to lure people who buy cars, not just make them, by offering financial sweeteners. There’s a catch, though. According to Trump’s proposal only US-built cars, trucks, and SUVs would be eligible for his tax breaks.
Trump plans to let car buyers deduct the interest on their car loans from their federal tax obligations. In addition to hopefully winning voters by making financing a car more affordable, Trump is banking on the scheme boosting car production in the US. This means anyone buying a car built outside of America won’t be eligible for tax breaks.
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Although most foreign automakers now have factories in the US producing certain model lines – and those cars will probably also get the breaks – that still leaves many popular cars off the list, such as the BMW 3-series.
“I do not want it to benefit other countries, I want it to benefit us,” Trump told fans at a rally in Greensboro, North Carolina, as reported by Bloomberg. “Deductibility of interest is great, but only if the car is manufactured in the United States. Why the hell would we give them taxes if they manufacture the car in China, Japan, or lots of other places that stole our business over the years?”
That last comment suggests that being an American-based company isn’t enough and that the tax break eligibility comes down to the origin of the specific model, much as it does for existing EV tax credits.
“I think that is going to be great for Detroit,” Trump said of the plan, perhaps hoping to repair some of the PR damage he caused to his own campaign earlier this month when he made some less-than-flattering comments about Detroit while talking to the city’s residents.
Making tax breaks available on US-built cars is only one part of Trump’s plan to persuade Americans to buy locally-built vehicles. He has also pledged to introduce high tariffs on cars built in China and even Mexico.
