Relevant news from Politico Pro:
A tariff based on the carbon content of imported goods could be part of a bigger Trump administration plan to raise revenue, counter unfair trading practices and increase negotiating leverage, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Treasury Department said Thursday.
“I think this is a very interesting idea,” Scott Bessent told Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) at a Senate Finance Committee hearing on his nomination. “It could be part of an entire tariff program.”
Cassidy has crafted a bill that would impose a “foreign pollution fee” on carbon-intensive products coming from China and other nations. It's not clear what Trump himself thinks of the idea, but some of his advisers, such as former U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, have endorsed the concept.
In addition, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a staunch Trump ally, spoke positively about the idea when introducing Bessent to the committee.
"If you want to clean up the environment, a carbon fee seems to be a good way to do it, to punish China and India for bad carbon practices," Graham said.
Bessent seemed to indicate that Trump has not finalized exactly what he wants to do on tariffs, despite widespread expectations that he will take some actions shortly after he is inaugurated on Monday.
“President Trump hasn't taken office yet, but if confirmed, I look forward to working with him on various strategies, some that could be specifically aimed toward carbon, as you say, others that could be aimed toward unfair trade practices, unfair financing practices,” Bessent said.
@Dana Nuccitelli This matches what I have suspected. Republicans are more receptive to pro-climate policy if there are CLEAR financial benefits. This is something we should exploit in order to score climate wins with this administration.
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