White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said on Friday the U.S. economy is still strong despite a jobs report this week that was softer than analysts had expected.
"When you look at the whole economic landscape, I would say it's still very strong and I would say it's still a V-shaped recovery," Kudlow said in an interview with Fox Business Network.
The U.S. economy added the fewest workers in six months in November, with nonfarm payrolls increasing by 245,000 jobs last month after rising by 610,000 in October, the Labor Department said on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls would increase by 469,000 jobs in November.
The veteran financial guru and former Ronald Reagan adviser also said that he sees Congress making progress toward a new stimulus deal and urged legislators to act quickly.
A bipartisan, $908 billion coronavirus aid plan gained momentum in the U.S. Congress on Thursday as conservative lawmakers expressed their support.
“Just take that money and get on the horse,” said Kudlow, director of the National Economic Council, of the roughly $600 billion in unused funds left over from the Cares Act passed in March.
“Plus up unemployment assistance by, you know, let’s say 300 bucks a week, extend it out—I don’t know, I don’t want to negotiate here—but I’m saying at least several months, maybe until the end of the first quarter,” he said on CNCBC.
Kudlow noted that negotiations between congressional Republicans and Democrats are advancing after a monthslong stalemate, the Wall Street Journal explained.
Trump, he said, “is happy to provide assistance” in “key, targeted areas” such as the small-business Paycheck Protection Program, unemployment insurance, and measures to keep schools open.
“Talk is good,” said Kudlow, who worked as Reagan’s budget deputy between 1981 and 1985. “We may be moving forward, I can’t promise anything this morning. I’m just saying that the targeted approach is, I think, the best way.”
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