Washington’s favorite macro mic drop
White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett weighed in on the August U.S. employment report and delivered the kind of line markets love to overanalyze: inflation is under control. That’s not exactly a victory lap, but it is a signal that the administration wants to project calm after a big labor-market print.
The Fed gets its space
Hassett also said the Trump administration respects the independence of the Federal Reserve. Translation: the White House is trying to avoid sounding like it’s grabbing the steering wheel from Jerome Powell while investors are watching every job number like it’s the season finale.
Why investors care
This kind of commentary matters because jobs data and inflation expectations are joined at the hip. If the labor market stays sticky or inflation worries creep back in, rate-cut hopes can get kicked down the road — and that changes the entire mood for stocks, bonds, and anything that trades like it’s allergic to higher yields.
Big picture: the message here is less about one quote and more about the policy vibe. Markets don’t just price the numbers; they price the story around the numbers, too.