In a recent episode of the Joe Rogan Experience, former President Trump made a bold statement, expressing his seriousness about eliminating the federal income tax in the United States. Instead, he suggested replacing the revenue stream with tariffs on imports. Trump, who is running for the presidency in 2024, referred to the tariff policies of former US President William McKinley during the 1890s as highly successful for the country. He argued that implementing similar policies today would provide the necessary funding for the government. During his conversation with Rogan, Trump claimed that the tariffs generated so much revenue that government officials struggled to find ways to spend it.
Critics have raised concerns that imposing tariffs on imports would effectively increase prices on goods, resulting in a hidden tax. However, Trump maintains that tariffs can boost the demand for the US dollar, protect domestic workers, and make US exports more appealing.
Furthermore, Trump has suggested a radical solution to alleviate the national debt: adopting Bitcoin. This is not the first time the former President has proposed drastic changes to the financial system. He believes that Bitcoin (BTC) could be used to eliminate the massive $35 trillion national debt. Speaking to Fox News’ Maria Bartiromo, Trump hinted at the idea of repaying creditors by giving them Bitcoin, effectively wiping away the debt.
Asset manager Bryan Courchesne has argued that establishing a Bitcoin strategic reserve for the US government is a challenging but not impossible task. Courchesne explained that the Department of Justice could transfer the approximately 200,000 BTC seized through various law enforcement actions to the United States Treasury. The government could then continue accumulating Bitcoin as a strategic reserve asset. However, Courchesne also acknowledged that bureaucratic hurdles would need to be overcome to establish such a reserve.
Interestingly, Trump is not the only presidential candidate who has proposed the idea of a Bitcoin strategic reserve. Former independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. also suggested Bitcoin as a means to safeguard the US dollar earlier in 2024. However, Kennedy Jr. later dropped out of the race.