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I love that I can buy a pallet of miscellaneous medical supplies, and also that someone who specifically wanted them but now can't pay for them has to go without.

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The point is to inflict cost to create incentive for domestic production. Obviously the inconsistency on tariffs undermines this position but the pandemic made it very clear that there are domestic security implications for not having important products produced state side. Its not like the $500 cost of a saline bag has anything to do with its production cost. It seems credit liquidity and confidence in long term protectionism are needed for this scheme to work. This requires unity, which we lack.

The point is to replace income taxes with tariffs. Domestic production is "desired" but this is not how to rebuild domestic production capability.

> Domestic production is "desired" but this is not how to rebuild domestic production capability

No need to be handwavy. It can be part of a strategy. A painful and ultimately less effective way than another, sure. There will be a lot of factors at play beyond these controls. This administration lacks the ability to focus for very long in any competent sense. I'm not sure there is a strategy that will work, at this time.

I'd really like to see a coherent strategy from somebody on rebuilding American manufacturing.

Bad ideas:

* Tax cuts for the rich will make it happen.[1]

* More tax cuts.[2]

* High tariffs with no plan.[3]

Semi-reasonable ideas:

* Clairmont study.[4]

* McKinsey study (2017).[5] Hasn't held up well.

Manufacturing is low-margin and requires stable markets. How to promote that? There are a lot of dull and boring businesses someone has to do.

Maybe tax policy should be set up to favor dividends over growth. That favors steadily profitable companies over growth companies.

[1] https://waysandmeans.house.gov/2025/01/24/the-golden-age-of-...

[2] https://nam.org/timmons-nam-members-meet-with-bessent-congre...

[3] https://x.com/cspan/status/1909639514861322433

[4] https://dc.claremont.org/restoring-american-manufacturing-a-...

[5] https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/americas/making-i...

Per product class protectionism installed for new products, then work up the supply chains. Protect electronics, cause electronics go into all thingd, thenprotect homegrown machine suppliers. aka copy chinese growth strategies

So we’d replace income tax with a regressive tax on consumption

I’ve ran the numbers in a bunch of ways and I don’t think they’re much if any more regressive than current income tax, given the rich avoid income past a point and spend a lot more on goods in the middle band, even percentage based. If you want a better progressive tax you’d need to focus on capital or spending on luxury goods and services.

Congratulations, you have rediscovered VAT

Sarcasm completely unnecessary.

As you say, the inconsistency on tariffs completely undermines this position, because it's widely known that tariffs which change radically from day to day don't incentivize domestic production (and indeed disincentivize all domestic investment). Doesn't this prove that creating incentives for domestic production is not the point, and either there's no clever scheme or the real goal of the scheme is something else?

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