‘It’s totally expected. It’s not surprising. Even the Democrats aren’t blaming me for it.’ Donald Trump reacts to record official job losses of 20.5 million in April
- U.S. unemployment his 14.7 per cent in April, according to new Labor Department figures
- They broke post-World War II record
- Revised figures show 870,000 jobs lost in March
- ‘There’s no surprise,’ Trump told Fox News
- Said he can ‘bring it back’
- Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19
President Donald Trump said the loss of 20.5 million jobs in the U.S. economy in April was ‘totally expected,’ in his first comments on the latest dark economic figures amid the coronavirus outbreak.
”It’s totally expected, there’s no surprise, Trump said during a call-in interview on ‘Fox & Friends’ Friday.
‘Even the Democrats aren’t blaming me for that. What I can do is I can bring it back,’ Trump said.
‘It’s totally expected, there’s no surprise, President Trump said Friday when asked about April unemployment figures showing total unemployment has jumped to 14.7 per cent
He commented on the economic news after fielding questions about the Justice Department’s decision to drop the prosecution of former national security advisor Mike Flynn and what he calls the ‘Russia hoax.’
Trump called the country was composed of ‘warriors,’ adding ‘Now, maybe more than ever because they’re going back to work.’
He repeated his claim that the U.S. had the ‘best economy in the world’ saying it was ‘in every way the best economy in the history of the world.’
‘And then they came in and they explained it and they said sir you have to turn it off. We have to close the country. And I said say it again?’
Trump then pivoted to the rising death rate. ‘We’ll be at 100,000, 110, the lower level of what was projected,’ he said.
The U.S. unemployment rate has skyrocketed to 14.7 percent in April – the highest rate since the 1930s Great Depression – as more than 20.5 million Americans suffer job losses amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Labor Department’s monthly employment figures released on Friday are stark evidence of the damage the coronavirus has done to a now-shattered economy.
The job losses have shattered the post-WWII record of 10.8 percent touched in November 1982.
Data for March was revised to show 870,000 jobs lost instead of 701,000 as previously reported with the unemployment rate jumping to 4.4 percent from a 50-year low of 3.5 percent.
The US unemployment rate has skyrocketed to 14.7 percent in April – the highest rate since the 1930s Great Depression – as more than 20.5 million Americans suffer job losses amid the coronavirus pandemic
That figure, however, did not account for the millions of jobs lost in the final two weeks of March when the coronavirus pandemic forced states to shut down.
The latest 14.7 percent figure comes a day after the Labor Department’s report into weekly unemployment benefit claims showed nearly 3.2 million laid-off workers applied for aid in the week ending May 2.
At least 33.5 million people have now filed for jobless aid in the seven weeks since the coronavirus began forcing millions of companies to close their doors, bringing the US economy to a near standstill.
The latest weekly claims data had no impact on the government’s April jobs report because it falls outside the period during which the government surveyed establishments and households for its monthly report.