“I’m the king of debt,” former President Donald Trump once said. “I’m great with debt. Nobody knows debt better than me.”
The nonprofit Committee for Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) concurs, stating in a recent report that Trump’s economic plan is expected to increase U.S. debt by $7.5 trillion over the next decade—more than twice the $3.5 trillion projected from Vice President Kamala Harris’ plan.
“Both the Republican and Democratic candidates for President have put forward campaign plans that would, at best, maintain the status quo and, at worst, add tremendously to our debt and deficits,” the CRFB wrote Monday.
The report highlighted that these estimates carry “a high degree of uncertainty” due to both campaigns refraining from providing detailed information about their economic strategies. According to the CRFB, Harris’ policies could potentially add between zero and $8.1 trillion to the debt, while Trump’s could range from $1.5 trillion to $15.2 trillion.
Trump, who labels himself as the “debt king,” has previously claimed, “I think nobody knows more about taxes than I do, maybe in the history of the world.”
On the campaign trail, he has promised numerous tax cuts, including costly extensions of the 2017 tax cuts enacted during his administration, as well as eliminating taxes on tips, overtime pay, and Social Security.
Extending his Tax Cuts & Jobs Act (TCJA), the 2017 legislation that facilitated these cuts and is set to expire at the end of the year, is projected to be the most expensive aspect of Trump’s plan, costing an estimated $5.4 trillion, according to the report.
In contrast, Harris has vowed to extend TCJA benefits to individuals earning less than $400,000, which would have a significantly lower cost of $3 trillion.
Trump’s proposed revenue sources to offset his plan’s substantial costs—tariffs on imports and allowing oil companies to drill on protected lands—are expected to generate $3.7 trillion over a decade. This figure is less than the $4.3 trillion projected from Harris’ plan to increase taxes on corporations and individuals earning over $400,000, according to the CRFB.
The additional deficits from both Trump’s and Harris’ proposals would compound the estimated $22 trillion in budget deficits the U.S. is anticipated to incur over the next ten years without Congressional intervention. Earlier this year, the nation’s publicly held debt exceeded $35 trillion.
A prior CRFB report from June indicated that Trump increased the national debt at twice the rate of President Joe Biden during his time in office.
“I understand money better than anybody,” Trump once said.
