The first jobs report of the year confirmed that the economy closed out an excellent 2019 in strong shape. The Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the U.S. unemployment rate has persisted at a 50-year low of 3.5%, with real wage growth up by 2.9% in the past year. The report didn’t blow out expectations, but it didn’t have to. It’s evidence that the longest bull market in history isn’t just continuing — it’s doing so while benefiting every class in the country. It’s also the single-best case for President Trump’s reelection.
The data wasn’t all great news for Trump. Manufacturing job growth once again missed expectations, in no small part due to his trade war. But his deregulatory agenda and tax cuts have instilled confidence in the economy and have helped pull record numbers of adults back into employment. Trump has managed to continue the post-Great Recession trend of increasing the employment of workers from outside of the labor force but also keep those in the labor force from leaving or losing their jobs. All of this has culminated in the economy achieving its lowest average unemployment rate under Trump than any other president at a comparable point in office since the figure started being officially recorded in 1948.
