White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on Treasury Secretary Bessent’s warning to U.S. trade partners, the House Budget Committee advancing the ‘big, beautiful bill’ and his outlook on the economy.
White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett says an economic “liftoff” could be on the horizon – as the promise of trade deals, upcoming clarity on tax cuts and promising job numbers set the stage for a major turnaround.
“There are going to be a lot of trade deals and there’s going to be clarity on the tax cuts and then firms are going to lift off,” he told FOX Business on Monday.
“Even before that happened, we’re getting really strong jobs numbers. First quarter capital equipment investment was north of 20 percent, one of the best quarters ever, because all of America knows that the golden age is coming, and we’ve got to start building stuff before everybody else gets in front of us.”
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National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett predicted an economic “liftoff” once trade deals and tax policies take shape. (Samuel Corum/Sipa/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Hassett predicted that the second half of 2025 will see growth “way north” of three percent and potentially north of four percent, setting the stage for one of the “better years we’ve ever had.”
“Even with the uncertainty… that I’ve written widely about over the last 25 years… we’ve got strong jobs numbers and strong investment, so once the uncertainty is lowered, then a liftoff from there is really going to be something to see.”
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U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (R) and National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett (L) speak to reporters after attending a meeting at the Capitol Building on April 28, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images)
On the heels of Moody’s Ratings downgrading the U.S. credit rating by one notch due to persistent fiscal deficits last week, Hassett dismissed the move on “Mornings with Maria.”
“Sec. Bessent said, ‘It’s a backward-looking thing, penalizing us for all the reckless spending of the Biden administration.’ But we’re cutting spending, we’re deregulating, we’ve got supply-side growth, so we’ve got every reason in the world to believe that we’re going to have the best economy on Earth,” he said.
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SlateStone Wealth chief market strategist Kenny Polcari discusses the importance of the Trump tax bill for investors on ‘Maria Bartiromo’s Wall Street.’
“If you have the best economy on Earth, you’re going to have the best debt on Earth, too. That’s the way I would rate it.”