President Donald Trump announced Friday that he has spoken with House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) about making interest payments on loans for American-made cars tax deductible.
While speaking with reporters in the Oval Office, Trump revealed that he has spoken with the leaders of both chambers of Congress about his vision for tax deductions on loans for U.S.-made cars.
“If you buy a car in the United States that’s made in the United States, if it’s manufactured here… if you borrow money you have interest payments, we’re going to let you deduct the interest payment for income tax reasons,” he said.
“I think people are going to be–they’ve never had a deduction. You know, deductions are supposed to be for, like, rich people, and it’s unfair to have that, but rich people are – I think I know more about deductions than any human being on Earth,” he said, drawing laughs in the room.
Trump stressed that this policy idea is aimed at benefiting middle-income earners.
“The truth is that people that are middle-income people that buy a car and actually have to borrow money, they’re going to now get an interest deduction on their car, if it’s made in the United States. If it’s made someplace else, that won’t take place.”
Trump first rolled out this policy proposal during his historic rally in October at a sold-out Madison Square Garden in New York City. He shared his vision again during his address to a joint session of Congress earlier this month.
He laid out other key aspects of his tax agenda as well during the address to the joint session of Congress.
“We’re seeking permanent income tax cuts all across the board,” Trump said. “And to get urgently needed relief to Americans hit especially hard by inflation, I’m calling for no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and no tax on Social Security benefits for our great seniors.”
The conversations between Trump, Thune, and Johnson come as Trump has announced a 25 percent tariff on imported cars, set to take effect April 2.