Former President Donald Trump has threatened to impose hefty tariffs on countries that refuse to accept deported migrants, signaling a potential overlap between his immigration and trade policies if he returns to the White House.
“If the countries don’t accept them back, we stop trading with those countries and impose large tariffs,” Trump stated on Thursday during an event at Montezuma Pass, Arizona.
Immigration continues to be a central theme of Trump’s reelection campaign. He has vowed to complete the construction of a border wall and to initiate the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. Polls suggest that most Americans favor limiting immigration.
Additionally, Trump has made imposing substantial tariffs on both adversaries and allies a focal point of his economic strategy. He has even proposed raising sufficient revenue through import tariffs to significantly lower income taxes, a major shift in how the U.S. finances its government, which could lead to widespread increases in consumer prices.
Trump visited the U.S.-Mexico border on Thursday, intensifying his criticism of Vice President Kamala Harris’ management of illegal immigration. This visit is part of his effort to win back Arizona, a state he narrowly lost by just over 10,000 votes in 2020.
This marked his first trip to the border since February and coincided with Harris’ keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, a calculated move to divert attention from her as she prepares for a significant political speech.
Trump has been on a week-long tour of swing states, trying to regain momentum after losing ground in recent weeks following President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race.
