The Trump administration is showing optimism as the June jobs report, released Thursday, revealed the U.S. added a better-than-expected 4.8 million jobs last month. The boost in jobs followed another unexpected addition of 2.7 million in May.
"Combined, the two months, we surpassed expectations by more than 11 million jobs," Tyler Goodspeed, the acting chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisors, told Cheddar.
Since the coronavirus pandemic forced widespread shutdowns across the country in March, more than 50 million people have applied for unemployment benefits. Today's numbers signal that companies in some areas are getting back to business.
"I do think that this really is a testament to not only the resilience of the American economy but also to the unprecedented scale and speed of the response of the federal government," said Goodspeed.
While Goodspeed acknowledged that the number of Americans who are still out of work is concerning, he said there is a lot to consider before implementing a Phase 4 stimulus package.
"The president is definitely interested in exploring the possibility of a payroll tax cut and also protecting businesses against exorbitant liability for COVID-related, non-economic damages," the advisor said.
While Goodspeed said he could not comment on efforts to extend the small business loan program, he did say the White House is examining the pandemic unemployment assistance program, which provides an additional $300 to $600 to weekly unemployment benefits. It is set to expire at the end of July.
"I think the unprecedented measures to expand access to unemployment insurance and to expand those benefits was important for mitigating that loss [of incomes]," he said. Now the administration is "carefully reconsidering whether we're striking the right balance between income replacement and making sure that we don't have high implicit tax rates on work."
Stephanie Akin, Politics Reporter for CQ Roll Call, breaks down
Senator Manchin's donation pool, and highlights what this support means for the conservative Democrat as well as the Republican party.
The global oil benchmark surpassed $90 for the first time in more than seven years. This comes as growing tensions between Russia and Ukraine add to concerns about the already-tight market. Jay Hatfield, Chief Investment Officer at ICAP, joined Cheddar to discuss what this benchmark means for the oil industry, and what might happen if Russia does invade its neighbor.
With the Beijing Winter Olympics set to get underway on Friday, Dan Wolken, a national columnist for USA Today, joined Cheddar News to break down the big storylines as the pandemic and international conflicts threaten to cast a cloud over the event that is aspirationally seen as a beacon of international cooperation. Wolken noted specific issues over cybersecurity for visiting athletes and disputes over human rights leading to a diplomatic boycott have been making waves even before the opening ceremony. "So you've got sort of these barbs going back and forth already between the Americans and the Chinese, and things haven't even started yet," he said. "We don't even know what's going to happen once the games start and people actually start winning medals."
We are a week away from the 2022 Beijing Olympics, and China has already faced a host of problems leading up to the opening ceremony of the Beijing games. DJ Peterson, president of Longview Global Advisors, joins Cheddar News to discuss the many concerns and controversies surrounding the event.
In 2021, QAnon, the community which traffics in conspiracy theories saw a rapid growth in its numbers. As a result of vaccine rollouts, a number of conspiracies surrounding them also began to circulate which then led to the rise of "Anti-Vaxxers". As a result, the QAnon and anti-vax communities have become increasingly intertwined and the results could be costing lives. Senior Researcher at Media Matters Alex Kaplan, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Supreme Court Justice Breyer has announced that he will officially retire from his post. He has served as the senior member of the more liberal wing in recent years. Now his retirement puts pressure on President Biden to decide on who will replace Breyer. Attorney and Media Editor at SCOTUS blog Katie Barlow, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
A long awaited report in the UK looking into the alleged parties held at 10 Downing Street during lockdown finds a culture of excessive drinking and a "failure of leadership" in Boris Johnson's government. Cheddar News speaks with international journalist Thomas Cole, who is closely monitoring latest developments.
While Donald Trump stated he would be willing to pardon Capitol Hill insurrectionists should he return to the presidency, the January 6 Committee issued subpoenas to 14 individuals who cast bogus electoral votes for the former president in seven states won by Joe Biden in 2020. Molly Jong-Fast, editor-at-large at The Daily Beast, joined Cheddar News to discuss the ongoing congressional investigation. "It is kind of crazy that every time Trump speaks, he kind of confesses a little more of what he was up to, but you really have to have proof," said Jong-Fast.
Natalie Fertig, federal cannabis policy reporter at Politico Pro, joins Cheddar News to discuss a new YouGov poll that looks at how Americans feel about marijuana and politics.
