In Las Vegas speech, Trump floats eliminating federal income tax 'if the tariffs work out'

Just The News ^ | 01/25/2025 | Nicholas Ballasy

[vespa300]

President Trump said the U.S. could possibly eliminate the federal income tax if his tariff plans work out as intended.

"If the tariffs work out like I think, a thing like that could happen, if you want to know the truth," he said. "Years ago, 1870 to 1913, we didn't have an income tax. What we had is tariffs."

Trump also said the additional IRS agents the Biden administration hired could potentially move to the border.

[vespa300]

I can't take all this winning. It's too much. Stop it please....

[EvilCapitalist]

Taking back the Panama Canal, and eliminating the income tax? Jimmy Carter, and Woodrow Wilson will be spinning in their graves. And I’m ok with that.

[dp0622]

It’s not gonna happen but still...just to HEAR IT makes my week!! :)

All those on SS and medicare or soon to be...it would have to go for there to be no income tax.

It should have NEVER ARRIVED.

But it did. When the life span was shorter than the retirement age or just about the same.

It’s a pyramid scheme...and it collapsed, being held up by the losing players.

But gotta love this first week!! :)

[It Aint Easy]

Per: https://files.taxfoundation.org/legacy/docs/fed_individual_rate_history_nominal.pdf
Normal tax rate in 1913 was 1% from $0 to $20,000

Per: https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm
$20,000 in 1913 equates to about $644,000 today.

I’d say we got the short end of the stick over the years with how the FedGov has managed the income tax.

[jimtorr]

FICA tax pays for SS and Medicare.

[tumblindice]

What a time to be alive!

[Brian Griffin]

In a proper functioning America, our imports should be mainly balanced by exports in a tariff-free bartered manner and the tariff revenue should comparatively insignificant, perhaps less than $10 billion in year.

[MinorityRepublican]

We need to reduce the size of our military. The Pentagon is taking 800 billion dollars per year. That's way too much.

We'll have to reform our entitlement programs even though we can't really talk about it.

[Brian Griffin]

Medicare has its own tax of 1.45% each, employer and employee, I believe.

That tax only covers a small part of the cost.

[hanamizu]

The income tax was sold on the idea that only the very rich would have to pay it. (Sound familiar?) I don’t believe the average American had to worry about the income tax until WWII. And just getting the money on March 15 (later April 15) wasn’t good enough so withholding from the workers’ paycheck began in ‘43.

[WildHighlander57]

All those on SS and medicare or soon to be...it would have to go for there to be no income tax.

So you are saying it would take the amount coming from tariffs, plus the amount of money that would otherwise be going to existing social security and Medicare recipients, to equal the amount of income tax taken from everyone ?

Would tariffs plus cutting excess government expenses -except- soc sec and Medicare for over 65’s, be enough to run the government?

[central_va]

All those on SS and medicare or soon to be...it would have to go for there to be no income tax.

Um, for your general information SS and MC are funded will payroll taxes and not income taxes. Carry on.

[Brian Griffin]

“Taking back the Panama Canal”

The Suez Crisis when Great Britain & France (with Israeli help) tried to recover the Suez Canal after Nasser took total control in the 1950s was a fiasco.

The Panama Canal is gone.

We need to reindustrialize to the extent that automated machinery allows. Most of the rest, except for electronics. should come via financially balanced trade with Mexico.

We need a blocked currency, so trade is financially balanced and benefits all.

[Ezekiel]

“I can’t take all this winning. It’s too much. Stop it please....”

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[Brian Griffin]

I think Medicare relies on about $400 billion/year of general tax revenue.

[DIRTYSECRET]

Tariffs would be low if spending is low. Drill for exports.

[canuck_conservative]

You realize tariffs will just raise the price of everything, right?

Consumers will wind up paying again, as usual ...

[Brian Griffin]

“if spending is low”

It’s not going to happen.

Expect at most $500 billion/year to be cut.

[wgmalabama]

Invade, intern and force tribute to the USA. For an imperial country (blamed to be) we suck. If we look at concurring countries and forcing hard assets in tribute, we can put 3-4 billion under a tax / tribute system. No federal tax, pay off the debt, ….

Do I really need a /s ?

[hanamizu]

You realize tariffs will just raise the price of everything, right?

---

Tariffs will raise the prices of imported things, not everything. But I am not advocating the replacement of the income tax with tariffs. I was merely saying how the income tax was ‘sold’ to the American public. For its first quarter century is was just a tax on the very rich.