Analysis: ‘Likely impossible’ for Trump to cut 70 percent of regulations

A conservative advocacy group said Tuesday that it’s “likely impossible” for GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump to deliver on his promise to cut 70 percent of regulations.

The American Action Forum (AAF) estimates Trump would have to find a way to cut anywhere from $600 to $700 billion in regulatory costs to deliver the 70 to 80 percent cut in regulations he promised farmers during a roundtable discussion in Boynton Beach, Fla., on Monday.

{mosads}“We will probably cut 70 to 80 percent of the regulations,” Trump said at the campaign event, calling the Environmental Protection Agency and regulations a “disaster.”

“The farmers are going to be able to get back into the business that they’re supposed to be in, not in a business of filling out paperwork all day,” he said.

But the AAF claims even if the business mogul were able to repeal both the Affordable Care Act and the Dodd-Frank financial reform law, which cost states and private entities $51.6 billion and $36.3 billion, respectively, he’d fall short of the 10 percent cut in regulations proposed in his economic plan.

In such a scenario, Trump would still be short $10 billion of the $97 billion needed to reach the 10 percent cut, according to the group.

“Getting to the 70 percent target is far more ambitious and likely impossible, as one would need to target some of the most expensive rules across all agencies and affected industries,” AAF regulatory policy director Sam Batkins and research analyst Dan Goldbeck wrote.

The pair argued that it takes time and political capital to repeal regulations.

“Many of the regulations are directly implementing statutes passed by Congress, and that could require the legislative branch to produce legislation repealing the authorizing statute,” they wrote.

“Obviously, Democrats gaining control of either chamber of Congress [with a Trump administration] would seriously impede such actions. Even in the case of a unified Republican government, unless the Republicans somehow achieved 60 seats in the Senate, the Democrats would likely filibuster any major deregulatory action based the political profile of many of these issues.”