Trump spoke after the Labor Department released its employment report for May.
Washington:
On Friday, President Donald Trump celebrated an astonishing report on employment in the United States which showed that more than 2.5 million jobs were added last month during the coronavirus pandemic, and predicted that the battered economy would recover all of its lost jobs by next year.
“Today is probably, if you think about it, the biggest comeback in American history,” Trump said at the White House.
“We are going to be stronger than when we were driving high,” he added.
Trump, who had counted on a strong economy to boost his chances for re-election in November, said the recovery could be hampered by higher taxes and the implementation of a Green New Deal climate change plan if the Democrats won the White House.
He spoke after the Department of Labor released its employment report for May, which showed unemployment fell to 13.3% from 14.7% in April, a surprise after economists predicted it would increase to almost 20%. The non-farm payroll increased by just over 2.5 million jobs after a record drop of just under 20.7 million in April.
However, many economists warn that it could take years for the US economy to reinstate all of these lost jobs.
Trump has struggled to respond to the fallout from the new coronavirus epidemic, which has led to nationwide bottlenecks that have put the economy in virtual stall and left about 40 million Americans out of work.
Trump has urged state and local officials to lift trade restrictions to slow the spread of the virus, which has killed more than 1,088 Americans and infected more than 1.88 million since February.
Trump has said the U.S. economic recovery will accelerate as hard-hit pandemic states, including New York and New Jersey, allow business to resume. He said states like California that still have restrictions in place should follow the example of Florida and other states that have lifted them.
The Republican President, who was criticized for initially downplaying the threat of the virus in the United States, said authorities should focus on protecting the elderly, who are more likely to die from the virus, while allowing young people to return to work and school.
DEBATE ON THE STIMULUS
The US Congress has approved billions of dollars in aid to alleviate the economic blow to the pandemic, but Republicans and Democrats disagree on the need for further stimulus.
Trump said he would support new aid and Vice President Mike Pence, in an interview with CNBC, said it could include aid to states that have warned that they may have to fire teachers, police and other officials. Republicans in Congress resisted this idea.
Trump reiterated his call for lower payroll taxes and said he would soon announce tax incentives to encourage spending on restaurants and entertainment.
A series of public polls have shown that Trump is following presumed Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden nationally and in some of the battlefield states where the November 3 elections will be called.
Trump is also facing mass protests across the country following the death of George Floyd, an African American man, in police custody in Minneapolis last week. Floyd’s death rekindled thrilling racial tensions in America.
(With the exception of the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
