Guy broke down the May employment numbers for us. They were good. Very good. So good, in fact, that the media printed headlines like this: “We Ran Out of Words to Describe How Good the Jobs Numbers Are” and news anchors said things like this: “Good news for the country.”
No wonder Trump was so eager to break protocol and hint toward the positive report ahead of its release. His "indiscretion" could have had a major affect on the markets, NBC explains, but he just couldn't wait to share the good news.
Looking forward to seeing the employment numbers at 8:30 this morning.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 1, 2018
USA Today wondered the same thing as NBC: Did Trump's tweet threaten the national markets? According to an Office of Management and Budget procedure dating to 1985, the jobs report should be kept mum until the official release.
"Except for members of the staff of the agency issuing the principal economic indicator who have been designated by the agency head to provide technical explanations of the data, employees of the Executive Branch shall not comment publicly on the data until at least one hour after the official release time," the policy read.
Yet, it's unclear whether the rule applies to the president.
"I don't think he gave anything away, incidentally," National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow said in defense. "And I think this is all according to routine, law and custom."
Really, the media's concern about Trump's premature tweet was the only way to spin that overall unemployment is at 3.8 percent - the lowest since 1969. It's "incredible," according to Bloomberg's Joe Weisenthal.
The unemployment rate is now at its lowest level since 1969. Incredible that it's better than at any time during the 90s tech boom https://t.co/F8YXqMBVam
— Joe Weisenthal (@TheStalwart) June 1, 2018
In particular, several outlets noted, black unemployment is the lowest it's been since, ever - and it's closing in on the white unemployment rate.
The unemployment rate for black Americans hit a new record low of 5.9% pic.twitter.com/4MXawp5HkF
— Jamie Dupree (@jamiedupree) June 1, 2018
The record low, 5.9 percent, which was also covered by CNN Money, is the lowest it's been since the government started keeping track in 1972. It's even making improvement in recent months, down from 6.6 percent in April. The gap between black and white unemployment is narrower than ever, now at 2.4 points.
In a news report, CNN anchors Christine Romans and John Berman added that the jobs report is “Good news for the country.”
Join the conversation as a VIP Member