Amid general economic disarray, Trump attributes job growth to his influence
The country saw an increase of 151,000 jobs last month, reflecting the onset of job losses in the government sector.
TroibNews 
On Friday, President Donald Trump aimed to take credit for a rise in manufacturing jobs reported for February, suggesting the growth serves as evidence that his policies are making a positive impact, even as the U.S. economy shows signs of potential instability.
“We gained all these jobs, 10,000 jobs, and we barely started yet,” Trump stated to reporters in the Oval Office. “These numbers really reflect a lot of things that have happened since Nov. 5.”
His comments followed the release of new economic data revealing that the U.S. added 151,000 jobs last month, with notable increases in manufacturing and other sectors such as health care.
However, the unemployment rate rose to 4.1 percent, with nearly 10,000 government jobs lost by mid-February, hinting at possible larger losses in the public sector due to the administration's aggressive layoffs of federal employees.
More generally, the job numbers encapsulated a week filled with rising uncertainty regarding the impact of Trump's policies on an economy that has remained fairly stable in recent years. Earlier in the week, Trump's announcement of tariffs on Canada and Mexico led to a significant drop in stock prices, prompting him to quickly suggest potential exemptions, creating a sense of whiplash in financial markets. By Friday afternoon, the S&P 500 had fallen more than 3 percent over the week.
During the Oval Office event celebrating the employment figures, Trump dismissed concerns about public sector job losses, asserting that they were necessary to reduce what he considered an excessively large federal workforce.
"We had too many people in government," he remarked. "This built up and got worse and worse and they just hired more and more people."
When questioned about the potential repercussions of his trade war with Canada and Mexico on financial markets, the president expressed his commitment to his current approach. Yet, for Trump, this may entail further unpredictability regarding tariffs, which he has altered multiple times in relation to these longtime allies.
“There’ll always be changes and adjustments,” Trump commented, while acknowledging that the tariffs might cause "a little disturbance" for Americans. “There’ll always be some modifications.”
He described the exemptions granted to U.S. automakers as part of his effort to refine his tariff strategy, even as he downplayed worries that his methods could drive up costs and harm the economy.
"I could have left that, and you wouldn't have had a minor change," Trump said. "Instead, I was asked by the real majors, the big majors, if I could do this."
Trump emphasized that the boost in manufacturing jobs serves as an early indication that his policies are encouraging new investment in the U.S. and prompting companies to relocate their operations to circumvent tariffs.
His acknowledgment of the jobs report also represented a shift from the administration's recent narrative, which had focused on the lingering adverse effects of former President Joe Biden’s policies.
In his joint address to Congress earlier that week, Trump attributed the ongoing rise in egg prices to Biden, while his aides have occasionally dismissed signs of economic weakness as residual impacts of Biden’s administration, contending that it would take time for Trump to reshape the nation’s economic landscape.
"Could we be seeing that this economy that we inherited starting to roll a bit? Sure," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated Friday morning.
Yet just hours later, Trump took a different stance, suggesting he believed he was already guiding the economy in a new direction.
"We've not only stopped that manufacturing collapse, but we've begun to rapidly reverse it and get major gains," he said.
Navid Kalantari contributed to this report for TROIB News
“We gained all these jobs, 10,000 jobs, and we barely started yet,” Trump stated to reporters in the Oval Office. “These numbers really reflect a lot of things that have happened since Nov. 5.”
His comments followed the release of new economic data revealing that the U.S. added 151,000 jobs last month, with notable increases in manufacturing and other sectors such as health care.
However, the unemployment rate rose to 4.1 percent, with nearly 10,000 government jobs lost by mid-February, hinting at possible larger losses in the public sector due to the administration's aggressive layoffs of federal employees.
More generally, the job numbers encapsulated a week filled with rising uncertainty regarding the impact of Trump's policies on an economy that has remained fairly stable in recent years. Earlier in the week, Trump's announcement of tariffs on Canada and Mexico led to a significant drop in stock prices, prompting him to quickly suggest potential exemptions, creating a sense of whiplash in financial markets. By Friday afternoon, the S&P 500 had fallen more than 3 percent over the week.
During the Oval Office event celebrating the employment figures, Trump dismissed concerns about public sector job losses, asserting that they were necessary to reduce what he considered an excessively large federal workforce.
"We had too many people in government," he remarked. "This built up and got worse and worse and they just hired more and more people."
When questioned about the potential repercussions of his trade war with Canada and Mexico on financial markets, the president expressed his commitment to his current approach. Yet, for Trump, this may entail further unpredictability regarding tariffs, which he has altered multiple times in relation to these longtime allies.
“There’ll always be changes and adjustments,” Trump commented, while acknowledging that the tariffs might cause "a little disturbance" for Americans. “There’ll always be some modifications.”
He described the exemptions granted to U.S. automakers as part of his effort to refine his tariff strategy, even as he downplayed worries that his methods could drive up costs and harm the economy.
"I could have left that, and you wouldn't have had a minor change," Trump said. "Instead, I was asked by the real majors, the big majors, if I could do this."
Trump emphasized that the boost in manufacturing jobs serves as an early indication that his policies are encouraging new investment in the U.S. and prompting companies to relocate their operations to circumvent tariffs.
His acknowledgment of the jobs report also represented a shift from the administration's recent narrative, which had focused on the lingering adverse effects of former President Joe Biden’s policies.
In his joint address to Congress earlier that week, Trump attributed the ongoing rise in egg prices to Biden, while his aides have occasionally dismissed signs of economic weakness as residual impacts of Biden’s administration, contending that it would take time for Trump to reshape the nation’s economic landscape.
"Could we be seeing that this economy that we inherited starting to roll a bit? Sure," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated Friday morning.
Yet just hours later, Trump took a different stance, suggesting he believed he was already guiding the economy in a new direction.
"We've not only stopped that manufacturing collapse, but we've begun to rapidly reverse it and get major gains," he said.
Navid Kalantari contributed to this report for TROIB News
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