ATLANTA - Chase Oliver doubts American households want - or can afford - to pay an extra $1,500 so Donald Trump can punish China and other countries with a 10 percent tariff on imported goods.
“China won’t pay for these tariffs. Everyday Americans will,” says Oliver, 38, who topped the field in 4 Libertarian primaries and participated in the Free and Equal debate.
The former president brayed that he would place an extra 10 percent tariff to combat what he called dumping products at too-low costs. What it will do in the real world is raise the cost of products we use every day, with negligible impact on American manufacturing, according to a study by the Center for American Progress Action Fund.
“The last thing that we need - with higher prices for housing, fuel, food, and medicine - is to have a blowhard demand that we pay more because he’s worried he needs to create a boogeyman for the campaign trail,” Oliver says. “Americans are seeing through this, and they’re clamoring for new voices who understand how 21st-century families live.”
Oliver adds that in his first week as president, he will not use his power to levy tariffs, and instead use it to end them all.
“Free trade will improve lives both here and in any country we do business with,” Oliver adds. “It’s also part of my foreign policy plan to promote long-term peace. Countries don’t start wars with their leading trade partners.”
Libertarians will choose the party’s standard bearer at the Libertarian National Convention in Washington DC on Memorial Day weekend.
LATEST UPDATES
Since his campaign began in 2023, Chase Oliver:
Participated in the Free and Equal Debate that included candidates outside of the Old Parties.
Topped the vote in four Libertarian primaries.
Won the Presidential Straw Poll with about 43 percent of the vote at Libertarian Party of Iowa’s first Caucus. The Iowa Caucuses kick off the presidential campaign season, and showings here can make or break candidacies.
Became the first third-party presidential candidate invited to speak at the Iowa Political Soapbox at the State Fair, a reward for in-person campaigning in the Hawkeye State.
Has donors from all 50 states, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico.
As Georgia’s first openly gay Senate candidate, spent June marching and meeting with many people at Pride events in Chicago, Atlanta, and Kansas City.
Oliver’s national attention grew following his debate with incumbent Sen. Raphael Warnock and an empty podium set aside for opponent Herschel Walker. Oliver garnered over 80,000 votes and forced a runoff between the Republican and Democratic candidates.
Broadcast coverage includes PBS, CNN, Fox Business, Forbes, and CSPAN. Print coverage includes The New York Times, The Washington Post, Bloomberg, and Rolling Stone, which labels him the “Most Influential Libertarian.”
Oliver is available for media interviews, including for university journalism and communications students.
To learn more about Chase Oliver, visit votechaseoliver.com.