This Sunday, Kudlow told The Cats Roundtable that the “overall economy is probably stronger” than the Friday jobs report numbers to suggest. Trump’s economic advisor pushed back on criticisms of the jobs report, simply saying, “I don’t buy it.”
“I want to point out, a 6.7 percent unemployment is a heck of a thing coming up from this pandemic contraction,” Kudlow added. “And we’re still dealing, obviously, with virus spikes.”
Kudlow doesn’t deny that the economy went through a somersault earlier this year, after historically low unemployment rates under the Trump administration. But the pandemic, and the lockdowns that followed, lead the unemployment rate to swell, from 3.8% in February to 13.0% by May.
Despite that “pandemic contraction,” Kudlow said the latest jobs report shows the recovery is happening, and happening stronger than anybody predicted, with minority groups and women re-entering the workforce at record numbers.
“They had the biggest drops in unemployment,” Kudlow said about the women and minority employment rate. “And the private sector produced 484,000 jobs—so the drop in unemployment is not simply some people dropping out of the labor force, although there is that. There is still hardship, absolutely.”
But Kudlow believed a combination of strong consumer spending, vaccine roll-outs, and thriving sectors of the economy were an optimistic indicator into the new year.
“We’ve had a lot of trouble with small business going down, but in the American tradition of ingenuity, people are getting back up on their feet and starting all over again,” Kudlow told The Cats Roundtable.
While Kudlow admits isn’t there’s difficulty across the country, he believes Americans should read the writing on the wall: a recovery is here, and, as the pandemic subsides, the economy will go full steam.
“I’m not saying it’s perfect—it’s not,” Kudlow cautioned. “But the numbers across the board are overwhelmingly strong, and the media may wish they reported accurately or not, but the facts are the facts.”
As well as the jobs report, Kudlow noted the advances in treatment for coronavirus, which include a number of therapies, and perhaps most importantly, the mid-December roll-out of the first rounds of the coronavirus vaccine,
The FDA has set a goal of 20 million vaccine doses this December. But that number is sure to grow into the new year, with Kudlow telling The Cats Roundtable the FDA said it could see as many as 100 million vaccine doses by February and March.
“Help is on the way,” Kudlow assured. “I can tell you the US military has a phenomenal distribution plan to get it out to the states.
This holiday season is predicted to have another virus spike, but Kudlow said the Trump administration was doing all it could to minimize the risks.
“That’s what our experts are saying,” he told The Cats Roundtable, but added with the vaccine on our doorstep, to kick the virus out, Americans need to stick to the guidelines when they head out the door.
“Masking, distancing, good hygiene, and avoiding large crowds,” Kudlow listed. “We just got to keep that going, that discipline, and that will flatten the curves, and then the vaccine will kick in.”
Despite the predictions, Kudlow said the Trump administration had a plan to do everything it can for Americans and health-care workers.
“The President still argues, and I totally support this: we could target the virus spikes, we could deliver additional resources, including staffing to hospitals if need be,” Kudlow explained. “Help is on the way, and we will be returning to normal before long.”
But, Kudlow warned, any sweeping shutdown orders to businesses or schools could seriously hamper the “V” shape recovery he and the President believe is underway.
“Keep the businesses open and keep the schools open—those two things are so important for our kids, for our education, and for our economy.”
Listen to the interview below
