The markets will rise or fall depending on whether President Donald Trump stays on message during his speech in Missouri about tax reform, CNBC’s Jim Cramer said Wednesday.
In an address Wednesday, Trump is expected to tout tax cuts as a way to help workers and the middle class in an economy “rigged” against them, according to Reuters. This will be Trump’s first presidential speech specifically on tax policy.
“If the president is sticking to the prompter, then we can go higher. If he’s off the prompter, then we probably go lower,” Cramer said on “Squawk on the Street.”
“You can just say today is a day where the president read the prompter, buy stocks … president off prompter, sell stocks,” he added.
The promise of tax cuts and other business-friendly legislation by Trump has arguably helped push the stock market higher since the election, some analysts say. However, the tax reform push has been hit with repeated delays.
Cramer said, so far, there are two things that have thwarted the Trump administration and Congress on tax reform going forward.
“And they both have the name R and R,” Cramer said. “Repeal and replace and rest and relaxation. There are 12 days in September, I mean that’s a very short time to be able to do anything other than solve the debt ceiling.”
Congress faces a series of fiscal deadlines before the end of next month, including passing a bill to fund the government which would avert a government shutdown and a default on the national debt.
Cramer added many CEOs believe Washington is doing “business as usual,” and the executives are not planning their short-term strategies around policies.
Cramer: Stocks to come under pressure if Trump goes rogue in tax reform speech