(The Center Square) – “Bad economics and weak leadership lead to war,” said Arthur Laffer, a former economic advisor to Ronald Reagan. Donald Trump is our “greatest safety to avoid a third world war. Donald Trump can assure us that won't happen.”
Laffer was joined at the Republican National Convention discussion by North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and other panelists to discuss the contrast between the Trump and Biden administrations' economic policies.
“The average income for a worker went up $4000 under Donald Trump,” Laffer pointed out. “The average worker has lost about $2000 per year under the Biden administration.”
“Every single time we’ve raised taxes on the rich, the poor have been hammered,” Laffer said. “Asymmetrically, every time we’ve lowered tax rates on the rich, the primary beneficiaries have been the poor, the minorities, the disenfranchised.”
In a recent press conference, President Joe Biden boasted about his economic policy, daring reporters to find a “mainstream economist” who would say the Biden administration “hasn’t done a good job.”
He also mentioned “corporate greed” as a barrier to economic prosperity for the working class.
“You cannot tax an economy into prosperity,” Laffer said. “A poor person cannot spend themselves into wealth.”
Biden’s economic policies have been characterized by spending and federal investment into various industries, such as transportation, clean energy, and semiconductors.
Along with spending, the administration has implemented regulations which panelists say is burdening the oil and gas industry.
Twenty-six percent of federal lands are unable to be developed for oil and gas production, said Harold Hamm, Executive Chairman of Continental Resources.
The stock market also made significantly higher gains under the Trump administration, according to the panelists.
“If you look at the character of the stock rally over the last two days, the sectors that would benefit most from President Trump winning—financials and energy in particular—have done the best,” said Jason Trennert, CEO of Strategas Securities LLC.
In contrast to Biden, Trump's economic policy during his first term included several initiatives and legislative actions aimed at deregulation, onshoring manufacturing, and tax reform.
The former president significantly reduced the corporate tax rate, rolled back regulations on industries like coal, oil, and gas, and renegotiated the North American Free Trade Agreement which resulted in the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.
Mexico is the US’s largest trading partner. U.S. goods and services trade with Mexico totaled some $855.1 billion in 2022. Exports were $362.0 billion and imports were $493.1 billion, according to the Office of the US Trade Representative.
As the border crisis continues to unfold, panelists underscored the stern policies taken during the Trump administration.
Stephen Moore, an economist for the Heritage Foundation, mentioned that Trump's use of tariffs as a bargaining tool was crucial in forcing Mexico to help the US address the border.
“Trump said, ‘if you don't help us on the border, we’re going to impose a larger tariff.’ Three days later, the Mexicans came back and said, ‘we’ll help on the border.’”
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