Donald Trump has suggested eliminating U.S. income tax and replacing it with tariffs on imports

Donald Trump has suggested eliminating U.S. income tax and replacing it with tariffs on imports.

Donald Trump on Thursday suggested the idea of implementing an "all tariff policy" that could potentially allow the U.S. to eliminate the income tax, according to sources in a private meeting with the Republican presidential candidate, CNBC reported.

During the meeting with GOP lawmakers at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, D.C., Trump also discussed using tariffs as a tool to gain negotiating power over adversaries, another source present in the room said.

These comments indicate that Trump, who previously utilized tariffs as a key component of his foreign policy, is contemplating a much more protectionist trade agenda if he wins against President Joe Biden in the upcoming election.

Spokespeople for Trump’s campaign did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment. Later Thursday morning, Trump posted on Truth Social, saying the meeting involved "lots discussed, all positive," but did not provide further details.

Trump’s idea of replacing income taxes with tariffs quickly attracted criticism.

"Broadly substituting tariffs for income tax is a sure way to hit hard low and middle income Americans and reward top," wrote David Kamin, a professor at New York University School of Law, on X.

Washington Post op-ed columnist Catherine Rampell pointed out that since tens of millions of Americans who pay no federal income taxes would presumably be affected by Trump’s tariff plan, "this sounds like a huge tax increase on the lower/middle income classes."

Trump's visit to Capitol Hill to meet with Republican lawmakers and business leaders marked his first return to the area since January 6, 2021, when he urged his supporters to march to the U.S. Capitol to protest his 2020 election loss to Biden.

Trump was later impeached by the House for inciting the violent mob that stormed the Capitol and temporarily disrupted the peaceful transfer of presidential power.