| | | A brief summary of Trump's interview on CNBC this morning. No comment needed, speaks for itself.
President Donald Trump once again insisted that the June job numbers were rigged and politically motivated in defending his firing of Bureau of Labor Statistics head Erika McEntarfer on Friday during an interview on Tuesday.
When challenged on the point, he responded, "Give me a break." Trump is basing his arguments on revisions made to the jobs numbers, a normal process, before and after the 2024 presidential election.
"The numbers before the election were earth-shattering," then they were revised down after the election, he said. "It's a highly political situation."
In a wide-ranging interview on CNBC, the 45th and 47th president discussed two of his administration's key priorities — trade and immigration — and returned to his grievances regarding interest rate, de-banking of conservatives, and the 2020 presidential election.
While the weak jobs numbers on Friday make it more likely that the Fed will cut interest rates soon, Trump insists the central bank is too late.
"I wanted it a year ago," he said of cutting interest rates.
When asked if he'll run again, Trump said, "No. I probably won't run again."
Trump also said he may announce his choice to replace Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve chair soon.
Of Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor who has been mentioned as a potential nominee for Fed chair, Trump said, "I think he's a very good guy... Both Kevins are good," referring to Kevin Hassett, his director of the National Economic Council, which has also been mentioned as a Fed chair candidate.
"Numerous people are qualified," including people who work at CNBC, he added.
It's possible that he'll put his Fed chair nominee in the Fed board vacancy created by Adriana Kugler's resignation, Trump noted.
Apparently, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has removed himself from the running. "I love Scott, but he wants to stay where he is," so he said he'll take him off the list for Fed chair.
The discussion then turned to trade. Trump said he'll be announcing tariffs on semiconductors and chip in the "next week or so."
In one and half years, the tariffs on pharmaceuticals will jump to 150%, he said, because he wants them to be made in the U.S.
He thinks he'll raise the tariff on India substantially over the next 24 hours from the 25% rate announced on Friday, because the country continues to buy oil from Russia.
Trump touted his recent trade deals that the U.S. has made with Japan and Europe. The Japan deal includes a "signing bonus" of $550B, and Europe will give the U.S. $600B to invest however Trump wants, he contends. "We're a rich country again."
Both Japan and Europe will open up their countries to U.S. products. Japan will even take U.S. rice, "which nobody thought was possible," he said.
President Trump said the U.S. is very close to a trade deal with China. He said he'll meet with President Xi before the end of the year if there's a deal.
"If we don't make a deal, I'm not going to have a meeting ]" with him. "China is very reliant on the United States. I think we'll make a good deal."
Trump also contended that banks discriminate against conservatives, Trump insisted. "I had many accounts loaded up with cash" at JPMorgan Chase ( JPM) and he was told he had 20 days to move the funds.
Bank of America ( BAC) had zero interest in taking the deposits, he said.
Banks "discriminated against many conservatives," or perhaps Trump supporters more than conservatives, he said.
When asked about the reduced number of foreign-born workers in the U.S., which would limit economic growth, Trump said he's focusing on getting criminals out of the country.
With his deportation efforts, "we're looking for the criminals," he said.
But he did acknowledge the importance of immigrants in the U.S. workforce. "We're not going to do anything to hurt the farmers," he said.
"In some cases, we're sending them back to the country they came from then they can come back in legally," Trump said.
"These people, you can't replace them easily," he said.
Trump also continued to insist that the 2020 presidential election was rigged. He said his Attorney General Bill Barr "was wrong."
He wrapped up the interview: "One year ago, our country was dead. Now we have the hottest country of anywhere in the world, And I'm very happy to help." |
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