Trump's 'External Revenue Service' will collect from importers not 'foreign sources'

foxbusiness.com:

Former Congressional Budget Office director Doug Holtz Eakin explains the impact that tariffs would have on the Canadian economy and shares his thoughts on President-elect Trumps agenda and the House speakership vote.

President-elect Trump on Tuesday announced plans to create a new «External Revenue Service» that would be tasked with collecting revenue from tariffs, but economists are pushing back and noting that U.S. importers bear the brunt of the cost of tariffs rather than firms overseas.

«For far too long, we have relied on taxing our Great People using the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Through soft and pathetically weak Trade agreements, the American Economy has delivered growth and prosperity to the World, while taxing ourselves. It is time for that to change,» Trump wrote in a post on the Truth Social platform. 

«I am today announcing that I will create the EXTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE to collect our Tariffs, Duties, and all Revenue that come from Foreign sources. We will begin charging those that make money off of us with Trade, and they will start paying, FINALLY, their fair share. January 20, 2025, will be the birth day of the External Revenue Service,» he added.

Tariffs are taxes on imports, which in most cases are paid by the U.S.-based importer to an existing federal agency, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). That dynamic has prompted pushback from economists who say the name of the proposed External Revenue Service represents an effort to obscure who pays for tariffs.

TRUMP DENIES REPORT ABOUT CHANGES TO TARIFF PLANS

President-elect Trump said he plans to create the «External Revenue Service» to collect tariffs paid by U.S. importers. (Bill Pugliano/Getty Images / Getty Images)

«The President-elect