One of the things about living in a small community is that everyone knows what everyone else is doing and what they are up to at any given time. There are always a few key people who have their thumb on the pulse of the community and are always the go-to person to get all the local gossip and chit-chat. But in general, small-town and rural community people know most of who is around and what’s going on. Mind you, there are ups and downs to this; you want to mind what you say behind people’s backs because, as the saying goes, bad gas travels fast in a small town.
The other part is that most of us know what everyone else does for a living. Since I do, well, this, I’ve become kind of a local oracle for political questions, and it’s not unusual to bump into someone at the post office or the gas station and have them ask, “Hey, Ward, what do you think of this here?” Granted, since our part of the Valley is deep red Trump country, my answers are usually well received.
Yesterday it was during our weekly lunch at a lodge up the highway that one of the servers asked me what I thought of the “no tax on tips” idea. Of course, as I replied, I think it’s always a good idea to drop or eliminate taxes at every opportunity.
It seems former President Trump agrees, and he’s pushing supporters to write “No tax on tips” on every bar and restaurant receipt.
Former President Trump on Friday encouraged his voters to write on restaurant receipts to spread the word of his proposal to eliminate taxes on tips.
Trump made the remarks at an event celebrating his 78th birthday in West Palm Beach with members of Club 47.
The former president told the crowd that as part of his plan for further tax cuts, he would eliminate taxes on tips for “restaurant workers, hospitality workers and anyone else that gets tips.”
Now this is a heck of a good idea – not just eliminating the tax, but having supporters write it on receipts. It’s an interesting marketing and sales move – and whatever else Trump is, he’s a pretty good salesman.
See Related: Trump Meets With 80 CEOs and Tells Them Exactly What He’ll Do If Elected President Again
Trump Celebrates His Birthday With Enthusiastic Crowd at ‘Club 47’ Event in West Palm Beach
It’s an interesting idea and has several things going for it, message-wise and campaign-wise.
First, from the campaign standpoint: This bit of advocacy is pithy, digestible, thought-provoking, and has the advantage of crowdsourcing the effort and in the process costing the campaign nothing. A brief look at X will show a lot of posts, including photos of restaurant and bar receipts with “no tax on trips” written across them; it’s a message that, it seems, is already getting out.
Second, from the messaging standpoint, this is just a good policy item to promote. Servers, bartenders, and other folks who work for tips are often paid quite a bit below the minimum wage, and the tipping system isn’t a bad one; it rewards an attentive server who works hard and bends every effort to make the customer’s experience a pleasant one, and (and this may be why Democrats don’t like it) punishes the lazy and inattentive. These people also aren’t generally in the upper tax brackets, so eliminating taxation on their tips will put more money in their pockets, which everybody is in favor of – except, again, Democrats.
So, when I was asked what I thought of the idea by the person who was not only our server but who is also a personal friend of ours, I replied that I was all in favor of it – not because of who I was talking to but because it’s a good idea.
I did not, however, write it on the receipt. I already know our server’s political views – she’s already on board.
