GOP senators reject Trump's pitch to use tariff revenue for ‘rebates'
The U.S. government has taken in more than $93 billion from tariffs through mid-July, and most GOP lawmakers want to put all of that toward reducing the national debt, which is over $36 trillion. The debt is expected to grow by another $3.4 trillion over the next decade due to Republicans' sweeping tax and immigration bill, enacted this month.
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The Hill
a minute ago
- The Hill
Labor secretary hails Trump move to fire BLS chief
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer praised President Trump's decision to fire the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) after the Friday release of the July jobs report. In a statement on social media, Chavez-DeRemer hailed Trump's decision to fire BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer after the agency, which is housed in the Labor Department, released a stunningly bad jobs report earlier Friday. 'I agree wholeheartedly with @POTUS that our jobs numbers must be fair, accurate, and never manipulated for political purposes,' wrote Chavez-DeRemer, without offering any evidence to support Trump's claim. 'A recent string of major revisions have come to light and raised concerns about decisions being made by the Biden-appointed Labor Commissioner,' she continued. 'I support the President's decision to replace Biden's Commissioner and ensure the American People can trust the important and influential data coming from BLS.' While McEntarfer was appointed by former President Biden to lead BLS, she had previously served for more than 20 years in the federal government in administrations led by both Democrats and Republicans. Former BLS Commissioner William Beech, who was appointed by Trump and served from 2019-2023, strongly condemned the firing of his successor. 'The totally groundless firing of Dr. Erika McEntarfer, my successor as Commissioner of Labor Statistics at BLS, sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the statistical mission of the Bureau,' Beech wrote, sharing a statement of concern from other BLS veterans. Trump's move to fire McEntarfer triggered outrage among economists and analysts across the ideological spectrum. 'Erika McEntarfer has devoted her career to public service. She has conducted herself as BLS Commissioner with great integrity. There is no evidence whatsoever that BLS data are politically biased,' wrote Michael R. Strain, director of economic policy studies at the conservative American Enterprise Insitute, on social media. 'By incorrectly asserting that the data are biased, President Trump is undermining the integrity of the information that policymakers, businesses, households, and investors use to make important decisions that affect the welfare of the nation,' he continued. 'It is imperative that decisionmakers understand that government statistics are unbiased and of the highest quality. By casting doubt on that, the President is damaging the United States,' Strain wrote.
Axios
a minute ago
- Axios
Top White House economist: I believe jobs numbers, but agency needs fixes
Top White House economist Stephen Miran tells Axios a key economic statistics agency needs "fresh eyes," but he stopped short of repeating President Trump's claim that Friday's jobs data was politically manipulated. Why it matters: President Trump ordered the the firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner on Friday after alleging — without evidence — that disappointing jobs numbers were "rigged." The bureau later confirmed commissioner Erika McEntarfer was terminated, with her deputy William Wiatrowski stepping in as acting commissioner. Catch up quick: The July jobs report, released earlier on Friday, showed just 73,000 jobs added last month. The BLS also announced massive revisions that showed employment was a combined 258,000 lower than previously thought. It was the second-largest two-month downward revision on record, behind only the pandemic. What they're saying: "There's been very little attempt to actually fix this problem and come up with creative solutions to make the data more reliable," says Miran. "It is absolutely time for fresh eyes on this to try and come up with solutions to improve the reliability of the data and get those revision levels down." Miran said the agency should try to incentivize faster responses or delay the data publications by a week or two, if it means smaller revisions down the line. Catch up quick: "In my opinion, today's Jobs Numbers were RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad," Trump posted on Truth Social. Trump accused the agency of boosting jobs figures to support his opponent's presidential candidacy. Reality check: The BLS, a nonpolitical agency housed within the Labor Department, has faced plummeting response rates to the surveys that comprise the report. It has scaled back some of its data collection — the Consumer Price Index report, for instance — due in part to proposed budget cuts. "Economic data are always noisy and this has always been a problem that has plagued economic research and economists — it's one that we make the best of," Miran said. Asked if he believes the numbers released by the BLS, Miran said "I think if the BLS tells me that there were 14,000 jobs created [in June], I don't have a competing survey that tells me otherwise." Between the lines: Miran said that revisions were largely a result of statistical artifacts — namely adjustments to account for seasonal quirks. He said that Trump's immigration policies would "inevitably show up in one way or another in the labor market data. I think that some of what we saw is also due to that." "If we're swapping out foreign-born job holders for American-born job holders, I think that's a win," Miran said. What to watch: Mainstream economists say the economy and labor market will likely slow further this year.
Los Angeles Times
a minute ago
- Los Angeles Times
Wall Street falls the most since May after employers slash hiring and tariffs roll out
The U.S. stock market had its worst day since May on Friday after the government reported a sharp slowdown in hiring and President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on imports from a number of U.S. trading partners. The S&P 500 fell 1.6%, its biggest decline since May 21 and its fourth straight loss. The index also posted a 2.4% loss for the week, marking a sharp shift from last week's record-setting streak of gains. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.2%, while the Nasdaq composite fell 2.2%. Worries on Wall Street about a weakening economy were heavily reinforced by the latest report on job growth in the U.S. Employers added just 73,000 jobs in July. That is sharply lower than economists expected. The Labor Department also reported that revisions shaved a stunning 258,000 jobs off May and June payrolls. Markets also reacted to the latest tariff news. President Donald Trump announced tariff rates on dozens of countries and pushed back the scheduled effective date to Aug. 7, adding more uncertainty to the global trade picture. 'The market has been felled by a one-two punch of additional tariffs, as well as the weaker-than-expected employment data -— not only for this month, but for the downward revisions to the prior months,' said Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA. Trump's decision to order the immediate firing of the head of the government agency that produces the monthly jobs figures will only fuel the market's uncertainty, Stovall added. The surprisingly weak hiring numbers led investors to step up their expectations for an interest rate cut in September. The market's odds of a quarter-point cut by the Federal Reserve rose to around 87% from just under 40% a day earlier, according to data from CME FedWatch. The question now: Will the Fed's policymakers consider a half-point cut next month, or even a quarter-point cut sometime before their next committee meeting, Stovall said. The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.21% from 4.39% just before the hiring report was released. That's a big move for the bond market. The yield on the two-year Treasury, which more closely tracks expectations for Fed actions, plunged to 3.68% from 3.94% just prior to the report's release. The Fed has held rates steady since December. A cut in rates would give the job market and overall economy a boost, but it could also risk fueling inflation, which is hovering stubbornly above the central bank's 2% target. An update on Thursday for the Fed's preferred measure of inflation showed that prices ticked higher in June, rising to 2.6% from 2.4% in May. The Fed has remained cautious about cutting interest rates because of worries that tariffs will add more fuel to inflation and weigh down economic growth. The central bank, though, also counts 'maximum employment' as one of its two mandates along with keeping prices stable. Issues with either of those goals could prompt a shift in policy. The Fed held rates steady again at its most recent meeting this week. Fed Chair Jerome Powell has been pressured by Trump to cut the benchmark rate, though that decision isn't his to make alone, but belongs to the 12 members of the Federal Open Market Committee. 'What had looked like a Teflon labor market showed some scratches this morning, as tariffs continue to work their way through the economy,' said Ellen Zentner, chief economic strategist for Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. 'A Fed that still appeared hesitant to lower rates may see a clearer path to a September cut, especially if data over the next month confirms the trend.' Businesses, investors and the Fed are all operating under a cloud of uncertainty from Trump's tariff policy. The latest moves give 66 countries, the European Union, Taiwan and the Falkland Islands another seven days, instead of taking effect on Friday, as Trump stated earlier. Companies have been warning investors that the policy, with some tariffs already in effect while others change or get extended, has made it difficult to make forecasts. Walmart, Procter & Gamble and many others have warned about import taxes raising costs, eating into profits and raising prices for consumers. Internet retail giant Amazon fell 8.3%, despite reporting encouraging profit and sales for its most recent quarter. Technology behemoth Apple fell 2.5% after also beating Wall Street's profit and revenue forecasts. Both companies face tougher operating conditions because of tariffs, with Apple forecasting a $1.1 billion hit from the fees in the current quarter. Exxon Mobil fell 1.8% after reporting that profit dropped to the lowest level in four years and sales fell as oil prices slumped as OPEC+ ramped up production. All told, the S&P 500 fell 101.38 points to 6,238.01. The Dow dropped 542.40 points to 43,588.58, and the Nasdaq gave up 472.32 points to finish at 20,650.13. Stocks fell across the world. Germany's DAX fell 2.7% and France's CAC 40 fell 2.9%. South Korea's Kospi tumbled 3.9% Troise and Veiga write for the Associated Press.
