President Donald Trump returned to the birthplace of one of his main 2024 election campaign ideas: no tax on tops. With several months to go until the midterm elections and one day after Tax Day, the president visited Las Vegas, Nevada, to tout his administration's economic agenda.
No Tax on Tips
What happens in Vegas doesn’t necessarily stay in Vegas. Instead, it becomes public policy.
President Trump hosted a roundtable out west, highlighting tax savings from his signature One Big Beautiful Bill. He took the opportunity to saunter down memory lane, telling the audience that a waitress gave him the idea of no tax on tips. Trump claimed that Las Vegas workers have reported refunds of $8,000 or more, and the scheme has helped "thousands of Nevada waiters and waitresses, casino dealers, bartenders, bellmen, barbers, caddies."
“Every single American at every income level has more money in their pockets this week because of the Republican tax policies,” Trump said. “And we got to win the midterms. If we don't, these policies are going to be taken away from you.”
Trump and the GOP have been losing momentum this year, driven primarily by the war in Iran. Liberty Nation News’ Public Square polling data suggest that Democrats maintained a four-point edge over Republicans. Additionally, the president's approval rating on the economy, inflation, and trade is firmly underwater.
The Iranian conflict, now approaching its eighth week, has decimated consumer confidence and raised the near-term inflation outlook. The University of Michigan’s Consumer Sentiment Index cratered to an all-time low this month, while households’ one-year inflation outlook firmed above 3% in the New York Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Expectations.
But Trump, as well as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, has espoused the various benefits of the president’s landmark legislation, whether no tax on overtime or vehicle loan interest deductions.
“Together, these brand new cuts and deductions in the Republican bill have been claimed by nearly half of all tax filers, so in one form or another, more than 50% have taken advantage of the things that we put into the bill,” Trump said. “We should call it the great big beautiful tax cut bill because that’s really what it is.”
The headline number from IRS data indicates the average tax refund increased more than 11% to almost $3,500. Bessent noted at an April 15 press briefing that about 53 million taxpayers took advantage of the new deductions in the One Big Beautiful Bill, and 45% of taxpayers bolstered their refunds through one of the four major reforms.
‘Tacky’ Stunts
Whether voters will remember this year’s tax filing season by November remains to be seen. But it will be a challenging mountain to climb for Trump and the Republicans when Americans are paying $4 a gallon for gas, inflationary pressures could be building, and job growth is anemic. Of course, in politics, six months is a lifetime – anything can happen.
Perhaps President Trump can replicate some of his 2024 campaign stunts, be it working at McDonald’s or performing the duties of a garbage man. But even he thinks these can be tacky.
“I mean, we do these things in politics. They’re a little embarrassing. They’re a little tiny embarrassing, but we do them, and you win by landslides, you know? It’s one of those,” Trump said, referencing this week’s stunt with a senior DoorDash driver.
