President Trump announces his new American industrialism. On the very same day of the Wall Street Journal editorial observing that the Biden manufacturing boom never happened, and American industry output has been flat for two years, Trump gave an important speech at Savannah on his plan for a new American industrialism.  

First up, the Journal points out that the ISM purchasing managers for manufacturing has been in almost continuous contraction since the autumn of 2022. Virtually all the manufacturing jobs under Biden-Harris were bounce-backs from the pandemic. 

Jobs and hours worked have declined since October 2022, while real average weekly wages for manufacturing workers are 2.7 percent lower than in January 2021. All this despite trillions of dollars of Biden-Harris subsidies and tax credits for the Green New Deal. 

However, overregulation, especially climate-related overregulation, along with ratcheting inflation, suppressed most hard goods industries. 

The Biden EPA climate rules threw a wet blanket over paper, cement, glass, steel, iron, and chemicals. Add to that burden: the problem of soaring electricity prices. 

So, along comes Trump today, vowing “as your President, here is the deal that I will be offering to every major company and manufacturer on Earth. I will give you the lowest taxes, the lowest energy costs. The lowest regulatory burden. And free access to the best and biggest market on the planet. But only if you make your product here in America.”

He calls that the new American industrialism. He wants to build ships, airplanes, robotics, A.I., big electricity. Then he talked about the centerpiece of his plan, “a manufacturing renaissance, which will be a 15 percent made in America tax rate.” 

He added that “now we’re cutting the business tax from 21 percent to 15 percent, which makes us the most competitive tax anywhere on the planet. But only for those who make their product in the USA. See, that’s an incentive.” He concluded: “And we’re going to continue with the regulatory cuts.”

Already, a couple of Republican House members have drawn up legislation for a 15 percent corporate tax rate, which really would make America a world-class competitor. And Trump explicitly endorsed a 100 percent expensing write-off for heavy machinery and other equipment in the first year. 

He wants full expensing for manufacturing investment. And, finally, he pledges to cut ten old regulations for every one new regulation. In his first years, he got it up to seven for one. Now he wants to go to ten for one. 

Trump’s new American industrialism is an important thematic name that ties a bow around all of his pro-growth policies. Break a leg Mr. President. You’re coming down the home stretch.

From Mr. Kudlow’s broadcast on Fox Business Network.