A Nobel laureate is warning supporters of President-elect Donald Trump that they’ll feel as though they’ve been “scammed” once his second administration begins.
Economist Paul Krugman, who is also a New York Timescolumnist, made the remarks on “The Daily Blast” podcast, speaking on an episode released Tuesday. The economist appeared on the show to discuss Trump’s economic plans, which include imposing tariffs on China, Canada and Mexico.
Trump has said he wants to impose a 25 percent tariff on China and Canada until they begin tackling drugs in their countries making their way into the US. The president-elect wants to impose similar tariffs on Mexico but emphasized he wants the country to significantly stop the flow of migrants across the southern border.
The move could violate a free trade deal, a plan in which countries agree on certain parameters regarding trade for goods and services.
In another potentially destructive move, Trump has said he wants to cut taxes for some US citizens.
“Trump has really radical policy ideas,” Krugman said on the show, admitting: “I, obviously, think they’re terrible.”
As Americans continue to assert inflation is still impacting their everyday lives, Krugman says the US isn’t doing that badly considering the COVID-19 pandemic. He said that sentiment changes depending on whether the current president is someone they voted for.
“We see this immediate switch in economic sentiment among Democrats and Republicans, where Republicans now say the economy is great, Democrats now say they’re worried about inflation and the impact that could result from Trump’s policies,” said Krugman.
“We suddenly switched from a plurality of people saying they were worse off — which wasn’t true, but that’s what people felt — to a plurality saying that they’re better off, which I think is … Republicans saying, ‘Oh, now that Trump is president-elect everything is great,’” he continued.
But those who voted for Trump shouldn’t hold their breath for his help, Krugman suggests.
A lot of people are “going to get brutally scammed” by the president-elect’s proposed economic plan, he said.
He alleged that Trump has spent a lot of his business career hiring contractors and not paying them.
“Scamming people like that is what his whole life has been around,” he added.
The economist cautions that Trump’s tax cuts for wealthy individuals will “redistribute income,” leaving less for the middle-class.
Separately, Trump’s deportation plan could harm the economy in several other ways. Trump wants to deport up to 11 million undocumented workers from the US, a promise he made during his last administration. The effort could cost billions and potentially cause the price of food to skyrocket, critics argue.
