Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said on August 20 that if elected, he would be open to naming Tesla CEO Elon Musk to a cabinet or advisory role and may consider ending a $7,500 tax credit for electric-vehicle purchases.
"Tax credits and tax incentives are not generally a very good thing," Trump told news agency Reuters in an interview after a campaign event in York, Pennsylvania.
Speaking more about EV tax credit, Trump said, "I'm not making any final decisions on it. I'm a big fan of electric cars, but I'm a fan of gasoline-propelled cars, and also hybrids and whatever else happens to come along."
Asked if he would consider naming Musk to an advisory role or cabinet job, Trump said he would. "He's a very smart guy. I certainly would, if he would do it, I certainly would. He's a brilliant guy," the former president who is making another bid for the White House said.
If elected, Trump could take steps to reverse Treasury Department rules that have made it easier for automakers to take advantage of the $7,500 credit or could ask Congress to repeal it.
In July, Musk said he "fully" endorsed Trump after the Republican presidential candidate was rushed bleeding from the stage of a rally in Pennsylvania after an apparent shooting.
When Trump was president, he sought to repeal the EV tax credit which was then expanded by President Joe Biden in 2022.
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Trump also said he would take steps to discourage exports of vehicles produced by the Detroit Three automakers and others from Mexico for US consumers by imposing new tariffs. He would also prevent Chinese automakers from building new plants in Mexico for the American market, Reuters said.
"If you put tariffs on those cars, they're going to make it here. It's very simple. It's not complicated. If you tell Mexico, 'look, you're stealing our car industry,' which they're doing now," Trump said.
"We will make our own cars. I want to make our own cars." He said he was open to Chinese and other automakers building vehicles in the US. "We're going to give incentives, and if China and other countries want to come here and sell the cars, they're going to build plants here, and they're going to hire our workers," he added.
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