Bizarrely, the State Department and Interior Department just commented on Trump's tax plan
Almost as soon as President Trump wrapped up his tax reform speech Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin issued a statement praising the plan. But then, inexplicably, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke also weighed in on the fiscal strategy.
Tillerson, the nation's top diplomat, hailed Trump's very domestic tax reform plan as a "vital measure for strengthening U.S. prosperity as well as global prosperity through investment and job creation." The second sentence of the statement preemptively pledged that the State Department would "continue to engage in economic diplomacy to bolster the prosperity of our nation through increased investment and trade," perhaps in an effort to explain why the State Department was issuing a statement about tax reform in the first place.
Though Zinke's domain is federal lands and natural resources, he too couldn't help but comment on how great Trump's tax reform plan would be for the American people. "The president's proposal would allow Americans to keep more of their hard-earned paychecks, allowing them to invest in their and their children's futures and also support and grow the economy," Zinke said. He tied the whole statement back to the Interior Department by claiming that Trump's tax reforms would mean Americans "will have more money in their pockets" to spend on trips to national parks, and that businesses would have more money to "invest in our public lands."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Mnuchin, whose department actually is focused on taxes, praised Trump's plan for being all about "growing the economy, stimulating job creation, increasing wages, revitalizing small businesses, and expanding economic opportunity for all Americans."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
How climate change is affecting ChristmasThe Explainer There may be a slim chance of future white Christmases
-
The MAGA civil war takes center stage at the Turning Point USA conferenceIN THE SPOTLIGHT ‘Americafest 2025’ was a who’s who of right-wing heavyweights eager to settle scores and lay claim to the future of MAGA
-
The 8 best drama movies of 2025the week recommends Nuclear war, dictatorship and the summer of 2020 highlight the most important and memorable films of 2025
-
TikTok secures deal to remain in USSpeed Read ByteDance will form a US version of the popular video-sharing platform
-
Unemployment rate ticks up amid fall job lossesSpeed Read Data released by the Commerce Department indicates ‘one of the weakest American labor markets in years’
-
US mints final penny after 232-year runSpeed Read Production of the one-cent coin has ended
-
Warner Bros. explores sale amid Paramount bidsSpeed Read The media giant, home to HBO and DC Studios, has received interest from multiple buying parties
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial uneaseSpeed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B dealspeed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting