Turning to the tax deductions in his signature policy bill that he signed into law last summer, Mr. Trump asserted that \u201cthousands of Nevada waiters, waitresses, casino dealers, bartenders, bellmen, barbers, caddies\u201d had \u201creceived the biggest tax refunds of their entire lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued, \u201cI just want to say: You\u2019re welcome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Trump appeared at the event alongside Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and a group of workers who said they had benefited from Mr. Trump\u2019s policies.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the remainder of 2026, you\u2019re going to see a big surge,\u201d Mr. Trump said. \u201cThe numbers are really tremendous, and that\u2019s why I\u2019m out here. If they were bad, I wouldn\u2019t be here today. I\u2019d be sitting home watching television.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Trump\u2019s remarks came amid a tourism downturn in Las Vegas,<\/a> which recorded an 11 percent decline in visitors last year<\/a>. Mr. Trump\u2019s immigration raids have rattled service workers, and his tariffs and foreign policy threats have angered international tourists \u2014 in particular, Canadians, the largest group of international visitors to the city.<\/p>\n The casino industry has continued to raise prices for guests, and restaurants on and off the Strip have charged more for food and drinks. <\/p>\n \u201cThe Trump slump is real,\u201d said Ted Pappageorge, the secretary-treasurer of Culinary Workers Union Local 226, which represents 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno. He added that union members were \u201cquite nervous and concerned about if there\u2019s a continued reduction in visitation.\u201d<\/p>\n The culinary union, which endorsed Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, and other labor groups have called on the Trump administration and lawmakers<\/a> to expand the policies exempting taxes of tips<\/a>. They have asked for service charges to qualify for the tax deduction, and to raise the cap for married couples filing taxes jointly.<\/p>\n Gov. Joe Lombardo of Nevada, a Republican, is in a competitive re-election race this year<\/a> against Democratic challengers, who have made pocketbook issues central to their campaigns. Lt. Gov. Stavros Anthony spoke at Mr. Trump\u2019s economic event on Thursday, but Mr. Lombardo did not.<\/p>\n Other incumbent officials in the state may face similar challenges in their re-election campaigns.<\/p>\n \u201cIt’s true that people are frustrated about affordability,\u201d Dr. Aury Nagy, a Republican running against Representative Susie Lee, a Democrat, for a seat<\/a> that includes southern Las Vegas, said in an interview before the event. He added that \u201cprices are higher, electric, gas prices particularly,\u201d but pointed to Mr. Trump\u2019s tapping of the strategic oil reserve<\/a>, and the cease-fire in the Middle East, as signs that relief was coming.<\/p>\n