In-town pool report #1: Hassett gaggle

Kevin Hassett, director of the national economic council, stopped to gaggle by the sticks after a TV hit this morning following the November jobs report release.

Hassett brushed off questions about concerns that his close relationship with President Trump would prevent him from charting an independent path at the central bank.

"The idea that being close to the president and serving the president well disqualifies someone for any job just doesn't make any sense to me.”

Asked about rising unemployment, Hassett noted that labor participation also rose. “For those two things that happened probably what’s going on is the 250,000 federal government workers who took the buyout are staying in the labor force and looking for work.”

Here is the recording courtesy of the Daily Mail's Nikki Schwab:

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https://time.com Nik Popli

Politics Reporter

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