Surprising jobs report shows unexpected losses, WH advisor attributes dip to DOGE cuts
The July jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics was less than rosy. White House Economic Advisor Kevin Hassett (and director of the National Economic Council) attributed the surprising numbers to federal employment cuts.
by Summer Lane | August 7, 2026
The newest jobs report rolled in on Friday morning, demonstrating surprising numbers. According to the data, the U.S. economy lost 23,000 jobs in July, suggesting that, amid the crunch of war with Iran, Americans are struggling to find work.
The unemployment rate remained largely unchanged at 4.1 percent, with 6.9 million people.
Employment declined in local government education, and retail trade, the report found. In healthcare, however, employment continued to trend upward.
Retail trade lost 19,000 jobs in July, and employment in local government education declined by 50,000. Employment declined in warehouse clubs, supercenters, and other general merchandise retailers, like gas stations and fuel dealers, the report noted.
“The momentum of the economy continues to be strong,” said National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett to reporters on Friday. “…When you see a number like that it seems like it’s dissonant with everything else that we’re seeing.”
Hassett said that, upon digging into the data, the agency found “two special factors”: a decline in government employment, due to DOGE cuts, as well as the ending of the World Cup in mid-July, which ended a lot of hospitality jobs.
“If you take those two effects out, it was about 100,000 job number, which is about consistent with what we expected,” he said.
In contrast to Hassett’s take, Mark Zandi, the chief economist at Moody’s Analytics economics team, said in a statement that the “overarching message” in the jobs report was that the economy was “struggling.”
He further explained, “Wage growth continues to decelerate and is below the rate of inflation, a clear tell that the job market is operating below full-employment despite the low unemployment rate. No wonder most Americans say they are upset about their finances and the economy’s performance.”
Photo: Pixabay
