Trump and Harris clashed over tariffs at the debate. Here’s how they affect your wallet.

Tariffs are costs imposed on goods imported from other countries, but just how effective are they, and at what point do they start hurting the economy?

The question now lies at the heart of the opposing viewpoints of America’s two presidential nominees. While Vice President Kamala Harris is proposing a mix of tax breaks for middle-class Americans and higher taxes on wealthier people in order to bolster growth and reduce the deficit, former President Donald Trump is proposing something more novel: using massive tariffs to both protect U.S. industries and raise revenues.

During Tuesday night’s presidential debate, Trump reiterated his commitment to his plan, in which a 10% tariff would be imposed on all imported goods and a 60% one on goods imported from China.

“Other countries are going to finally, after 75 years, pay us back for all that we’ve done for the world, and the tariff will be substantial,” Trump, the GOP nominee, said, adding his proposed across-the-board 10% tariff would raise “hundreds of billions of dollars.”

Harris, the Democratic nominee, responded that tariffs are effectively a “sales tax” on American households.

In fact, the Biden administration recently imposed its own set of tariffs, while extending ones first levied during the Trump administration. Harris has not explicitly stated whether she would extend them, but on her campaign website, she said she would continue to “support American leadership in semiconductors, clean energy, AI, and other cutting edge industries of the future," while addressing “unfair trade practices from China or any competitor that undermines American workers.”

The tariff fight, though perhaps wonky, is central to understanding the candidates’ economic visions — not to