Welcome to the Press. Now I'm Kristen Welker in Washington where we're monitoring multiple breaking news stories. Markets had another volatile day on Wall Street. Stocks closed slightly higher, but all the major indices were lower on the week.
I mean, continued uncertainty about President Trump's tariff policy and the U.S. jobs report falling just short of expectations. We will get to all of that in just a minute. But at any moment, New Mexico officials are said to provide an update on the investigation into the death of Gene Hackman and his wife.
The 95 year old Oscar winning actor and his wife were found dead in their Santa Fe home last week. His wife was found in the bathroom near an open prescription pill bottle. Officials previously said there are no signs of foul play, but the circumstances were suspicious enough to warrant an investigation. We are going to bring you that news conference as it begins and we are anticipating it will begin any moment now.
I do want to get to NC News correspondent Griffin who joins me from Santa Fe where that news conference is gonna get over by Dana. There are a lot of unanswered questions, right? Absolutely. A lot of answer questions.
We hope that this press conference will unveil the big mystery, what happened to Gene Hackman, his wife Betty Arakawa and their dog. Right now we're going to hear from investigators from not only the sheriff's office, the medical investigator's office and the fire department. As you can see behind me, you have Sheriff Adon there walking out, about to take the podium. It's been nine days since those bodies have been found in their Santa Fe home.
The couple. And I'm gonna step out of the way so we can listen to the sheriff as he gets underway here with this press conference. Officials updating us on the death of Gene Hackman and his wife in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Let's listen.
Good afternoon everybody. I'm sure. County Sheriff's office. With me today is Dr.
Heather Jarrell, Chief Medical Investigator for the New Mexico office of the medical investigator. Dr. Aaron Phipps, new Mexico State Public Health Veterinarian, New Mexico Department of Health. And also Chief Brian Moya, Santa Fe City Fire Department.
This Investigation started on February 26th with the discovery of Mr. Hackman and Ms. Arakawa and their dog at the residence. I just want to do a short recap and then touch on some new information.
As we know, both individuals tested negative for carbon monoxide. City fire conducted tests and deemed seen safe for deputies to conduct their investigation. The preliminary pacemaker interrogation results were released last week. And I'll let Dr.
Gerald touch more specifically on Those results, the gas Co. New Mexico. They also did an analysis of the residents and they found one minor leak and a single burner on the kitchen stove which was 0.33% of room air, which was pretty minute and insignificant. Since that time, Zena, the deceased dog, has been taken for an acropy at the Veterinary Diagnostic Services and we'll be awaiting those results.
Let's speak a little bit in reference to the timeline for Betsy Arakawa. We know from our investigation that on February 9, 2025, she picked up Xena from Bruda Veneri Hospital. There was a procedure that was done with the dog, which may explain why the dog was in a crate at the residence. Let's move on to February 11, 2025.
This is Arakawa had an email conversation with her massage therapist at about 11:21am Moving on into the afternoon. Ms. Erica Ericawa was at the Sprouts Farmers Market between 3:30 and 4:15pm Mr. Kawa was seen on surveillance video at the CVS Pharmacy in Santa Fe from 4:12 to 4:20pm she then stopped at a local pet food store at about 4:54pm her car was seen on surveillance and the remote control clicker that is assigned to her and her vehicle was used to enter the subdivision to gain access to the gated community.
At 5:15pm Numerous emails were unopened on her computer on February 11th. There was no additional outgoing communication from her or known activity after February 11, 2025. Cell phone information. The cell phone information and the cell phone data is pending.
We're working with state police to get the information from those phones. But our investigation shows that all the last known communication and activity from Mr. Apawa was on February 11th. I'm gonna go ahead and and turn over the podium to Dr.
Gerald. I would ask that everybody refrain from asking questions until everybody has provided their statements. I'll step up to the podium and then we'll go ahead and fill questions from the media. Thank you.
Good afternoon and thank you for being here. I'm Dr. Heather Darrell, the Chief Medical examiner for New Mexico at the Office of the Medical Investigator. I'd like to begin by stating that it is unprecedented for the Office of the Medical Investigator to make public statements about death investigations.
However, the circumstances surrounding these two deaths require accurate dissemination of important information. I've also spoken with the Hackman family prior to this conference who are aware of the autopsy findings and conclusions and are aware of this conference. On Thursday, February 27th, I performed an autopsy on Mr. Gene Hackman, Medical Examiner.
Dr. Daniel Gallego the Office of the Medical Investigator performed a full autopsy on this Betsy Arakawa Hackman also on Thursday, February 27th. My report Ms. Arakawa Hackman's legal name is Betsy Hackman, which is how she will be referred to hereafter.
The cause of death for Miss Betsy Hackman, aged 65 years, is hantavirus pulmonary Syndrome. The manner of death is natural. Autopsy examination and full body postmortem CT demonstrated no findings of trauma internally or externally with microscopic findings consistent with hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. Laboratory testing was positive for hantavirus at a clinical lab with required confirmation.
Testing positive at Scientific Laboratories division testing for COVID 19 influenza and other common respiratory viruses was negative. Testing for carbon monoxide was negative. There are no other significant natural disease findings. Pills present on scene were thyroid medication which were being taken as prescribed and is not currently a concern for a contributory cause of death.
The cause of death for Mr. Gene Hackman, aged 95 years, is hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease with Alzheimer's disease as a significant contributory factor. Autopsy examination and a full body post mortem CT examination demonstrated no acute findings of internal or external trauma and showed severe heart disease including multiple surgical procedures involving the heart, evidence of prior heart attacks and severe changes of the kidneys due to chronic high blood pressure. Examination of the brain showed advanced Alzheimer's disease as well as blood vessel changes in the brain secondary to chronic high blood pressure.
Laboratory testing performed at Scientific Laboratories Division was negative for COVID 19 influenza and other common respiratory viruses. Testing for HANA virus was negative. Testing for carbon monoxide was negative. Additionally, there were no autopsy findings concerning for HANA virus infection.
I have been asked when death occurred for these individuals. There is no reliable scientific method to accurately determine the exact time or date of death. Mr. Hackman's initial pacemaker data revealed cardiac activity on February 17 with subsequent pacemaker interrogation demonstrating an abnormal rhythm of atrial fibrillation on February 18th which was the last record of heart activity.
Based on this information, it is reasonable to conclude that Mr. Hackman probably died around February 18th. Based on the circumstances, it is reasonable to conclude that Ms. Hackman passed away first with February 11th being the last time that she was known to be alive.
Lastly, clinically, hantavirus infection is characterized by flu like symptoms consisting of fever, muscle aches, cough, sometimes vomiting and diarrhea that can progress to shortness of breath and cardiac or heart failure and lung failure. This occurs after a one to eight week exposure to excrement from a primarily particular Mouse species that carries hantavirus. The mortality of hantavirus. Excuse me.
The mortality rate of the hantavirus strain in the southwest is about 38 to 50%. The hantavirus strains in the United States are not transmissible from person to person, and so this is an appropriate time to segue to Dr. Aaron Phipps, the state public health veterinarian with the Mexico Department of Health. But before I do so, I'd like to kindly ask for everyone to please respect the privacy that Mr.
Jean Hackman, Ms. Betsy Hackman, and their family and friends deserve. Thank you. Thank you, Dr.
Gerald. I will now provide additional information about hantaviruses in New Mexico. There are many different types of hantaviruses found worldwide. These viruses are zoonotic, meaning they are transmitted from animals to humans.
Hantaviruses are carried by rodents. The hantavirus found in New Mexico, the xenomavirus, is found throughout the state, primarily in deer mice, but in other rodents as well. Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is a rare disease caused by hantaviruses, but a small number of human infections are found every year in New Mexico. Over the past five years, New Mexico has confirmed between one and seven hantavirus infections in humans each year through the end of 2024.
We have identified 136 infections over the past 50 years in New Mexico residents, five of these in Santa Fe County. This is a serious disease. 42% of these infections here in New Mexico were fatal. Most transmission occurs around the patient's residence or workplace, and the New Mexico Department of Health typically conducts an environmental investigation at the residents of all hantavirus cases in our jurisdiction.
This can help identify specific areas that may pose higher risk, providing insight into where transmission may have occurred and how to prevent future infections. On March 5, the New Mexico Department of Health staff conducted a risk assessment of the property, including the main residence as well as other structures on the property. This was critically important to address concerns about health risk to first responders as well as to inform any prevention measures needed to protect the family and other individuals entering the property in the future. We assessed the risk of exposure in the primary residence as low, similar to other well maintained houses in New Mexico.
We did identify signs of rodent entry and other structures on the property and provided information and resources about reducing the risk of hantavirus transmission related to those areas. Hantavirus can be transmitted to people through rodent urine droppings or saliva, so it is important to take special steps when cleaning up after rodents, avoiding contact with or breathing in aerosolized rodent urine or feces, especially in a poorly ventilated area, is key. Detailed guidance can be found on the New Mexico Department of Health and the CDC websites, but I will provide a very brief summary now. It is important to use gloves and a well fitting N95 mask when around or cleaning rodent infested areas and to open any windows or doors for at least 30 minutes beforehand.
To increase ventilation, spray the area thoroughly with a 10 bleach solution or a commercial disinfectant. Let it sit for 5 minutes. Next, clean the area with paper towels, then throw them away in a covered garbage can that is regularly emptied. Before removing gloves, wash your gloved hands with open water or with a disinfectant and then after removing gloves, wash your hands again with soap and water.
It's important to never sweep up or vacuum mouse droppings since this can spread particles up into the air. Since Hana virus is found throughout New Mexico, awareness of these risks and how to reduce them is important for all New Mexicans. The New Mexico Department of Health extends their deepest condolences to the families. We are listening to officials in Santa Fe, New Mexico for the first time informing the public of the cause of death for Gene Hackman and his wife Betsy Hackman.
The officials saying that Betsy Hackman was tragically the first to pass away, likely on February 11, the last time. They say that they are aware of email communications between Betsy Hackman and another individual. They say that she died of natural causes. She suffered from Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome, an incredibly rare pulmonary syndrome and infectious disease.
It begins with flu like symptoms, progresses rapidly to a more severe disease and it is contracted and you can contract the disease through interactions with rodents. In terms of how Gene Hackman passed away, according to these medical officials, Gene Hackman passed away. He had hypersensitive cardiovascular disease. He likely passed away after his wife on February 18.
The last time there was no activity from his pacemaker. Again the two found inside their Santa Fe home, their bodies partially mummified of course. Gene Hackman, a two time Oscar winning actor renowned in his industry. Again the very sad news that he and his wife passed away in their home.
His wife likely passing away first after contracting hantavirus which is carried by rodents. Important to point out that you heard the medical official there say that they did conduct a risk assessment for the home of Gene Hackman. There were not rodents found to be in that home, but there were signs of entry in other structures outside of the house. We will continue to track any and all developments related to this.
The officials did say that both of their families asking for privacy, understandably at this time. We want to turn now to the other big story that we are tracking today. The growing uncertainty facing the economy, consumers and workers as the Trump administration's actions and reactions. So chaos here in Washington and on Wall Street.
The Labor Department reported this morning the US added 151,000 new jobs last month, the first full month of President Trump's second term. The numbers came in just shy of expectations and largely do not account for recent government layoffs and buyouts. The president touted the numbers earlier today even as members of his economic team acknowledged more volatility could be on the way. With the administration looking to fire more government workers and slash spending.
The federal government layoffs will impact the labor market. We'll be in the labor market. No, I think the labor market is going to be fantastic, but it's going to have high paying manufacturing jobs as opposed to government jobs. We had too many people in government.
You can't just do that. We had many, many too many. This is for 40 years, you know, this isn't just now. This built up and got worse and worse and they just hired more and more people.
Then there's comments telling after a while we that included the president on Tuesday imposing sweeping tariffs on imports from Canada, Mexico and China. One day later, the president then announced a one month exemption from his tariffs for US Automakers and then one day after that announcing a one month exemption on some additional imports from Canada and Mexico before warning of new tariffs on Canada today. Here's the president being pressed in the Oval Office today by my colleague Peter Alexander about the impact of all that uncertainty. How much disturbance are you going to accept in the near term as a puncture that set expectations?
How long should Americans expect things to cost a bit more? Well, so far, Peter, there hasn't been very much because these numbers are coming out where we're here for just a little over four weeks. And these are fantastic numbers. I was watching some of the reports this morning.
They were surprised there could be some disturbance, a little bit of disturbance. The president also defended the confusion caused by his decisions during a new interview with Fox News and Maria Bartiromo. I think CEOs want to see predictability. They say, look, I have to speak with shareholders.
I got to make plans for Capex spending. I can't if it's 20% one day and then it's all for a month and it's 25%. So can you give us a sense of whether or not we are going to get clarity for the business community? Well, I think so.
But, you know, the tariffs could go up as time goes by and they may go up. And, you know, I don't know if it's predictability. So that's not fair. No, I think, I think that they say that, you know, it sounds good to say, but for years the globalists, the big globalists have been ripping off the United States.
They've been taking money away from the United States, and all we're doing is getting some of it back. And the uncertainty of this moment stretches well beyond America's borders. The news of the terrorists first being acted on Tuesday prompted Canada's prime minister to issue a dire warning to his country that the US Was trying to weaken its economy to make it easier to annex their territory. Joining me now is NBC News White House corporate Aaron Gilchrist, NBC News business and data correspondent Brian Chung, and NBC News senior White House correspondent Garrett Hake, who is live for us in Toronto.
Thank you all for being here this afternoon. Aaron, let me start with you. What have you learned from the president in the White House today about this back and forth over tariffs? Well, I think the back and forth is going to continue in some ways, Kristen.
We thought maybe we would get a little bit of clarity from the president today. And I think things didn't get clearer, perhaps a bit muddier. We heard the president reference today in his remarks about these tariffs that there could be potentially more tariffs on Canada, in particular as it relates to lumber and dairy products. He suggested the current policy around those Items are hurting U.S.
dairy farmers and that he would want to see more parity with Canadians as it relates to those particular items. And this is, you know, I think, as you talked about, we've been going back and forth, at least for the past week, really for the last several weeks, about tariffs being on and then off and then on again and maybe reduced a little bit in some places. We saw that happen for automakers, a delay in tariffs on products that were important to them. And then again yesterday, we learned more about the idea that products, goods and services that were under the USMCA would not experience these tariffs for about a month when we know reciprocal tariffs are supposed to go into effect around the globe.
And so those things, as you noted in nearly up to that bit of the interview with Maria Baromo, are really things that are still creating and leading to and furthering the instability and the uncertainty about how things are going to settle. We heard Canadian Prime Minister Kristen say that he expects that the trade war is going to continue for the foreseeable future. And so that, I think tells us something about what to expect going forward, that while there may be spaces where some of these things are pulled back, at least temporarily, the expectation is, at least for the Canadians, that they're going to continue to see some degree of back and forth for some time to come. I think you're absolutely right, particularly with the president signaling that in October he could impose reciprocal or in April, rather, the president could impose reciprocal tariffs, the market on track for its worst week since September.
How is the president reacting to this slightest is he, our administration officials, getting jittery at all? Well, no, to be blooded by. The president said that he's not watching the stock market as he's making these decisions, these economic decisions that he wants to be making, that he has been making over the last several days. We know that other members of his administration who've been out doing interviews and talking about the current situation have indicated that their concerns, they don't seem to be particularly concerned about the movement that we've been seeing in the stock market today.
They feel as though the economic policies and ideas that President Trump is putting forward, they take sort of a long view on these things. And their belief is that in the long term things will be better. They express that they understand there's some discomfort that people are anticipating in the short term and that there may be an increase in prices on certain goods and services in the short term. Their belief, though, is that in the long term it will benefit the American economy and lead to greater wealth for folks in this country.
And I think, you know, Brian can maybe get into a little bit more. But there are businesses, large businesses in this country that are fearful about the idea that prices go up, people less likely to spend money, and that's gonna hurt businesses as well. You're absolutely right. And the CEO's warning they will have to increase prices.
Aaron Gilchrist outside of the White House. Russ, thank you so much. Appreciate it, Aaron. Bryan, let me with that go to you.
I think the word of the week is uncertainty, right? What did all of this uncertainty mean for Wall street, for Main street, and what are you watching moving forward? Yeah, well, I think, you know, it's unequivocally a fact that we are more uncertain here on this Friday than we were going into this week on Monday. And that's because on Monday, when the tariffs weren't in effect, by the way, we were worrying about what the impact of these 25% tariffs would be.
We got the tariffs and we got A pair back in those tariffs for one sector and it was kind of brought out to other sectors as well. Again, those that are complying under the US ncaa, which the Trump administration negotiated in the first term. But if you're a business, you're going, okay, well even if I am exempt right now, you only get four weeks of exemption. So we're just gonna have this conversation all over again the first week of April.
If you're busy trying to play around that you have no more certainty now than you did in the beginning of the secretary. And of course we see the board behind you. Jobs, jobs, jobs. We got the jobs report it than expectations.
What did we learn and what are the potential implications of that? Ryan? Yeah, and a few caveats to these numbers. It is the first report that reflects anything that we've seen from the Trump administration because of the survey period was the middle of February.
The report prior to that covered period prior to inauguration. There wasn't really anything from this that tells us about the substantial impact of either the tariffs or necessarily the DOE child. I'll explain that in a second. But first, the unemployment rate of 4.1% for the month of February, that's basically around the same as what it was in the final months of the Biden administration.
So not too much to be read from that front. But as you mentioned, that headline number 151,000 jobs added in the month of February, that was below the 170,000 that economists had been expecting for that month. But if you kind of look at the average over the 12 months prior, that's kind of in line with that pace that we had seen anyway. So it's basically in line with again what we've been seeing.
Now, of course when we talk about the changes by industry, what is interesting I'll get the federal government in a second. I actually want to talk about that. Health care was the major driver of jockey and Kristen adding over 50,000. Manufacturing marginally higher as well.
But leave driving a lot of post pandemic recovery actually contracting. That's the third month in a row that's been the case for that industry. And you look at that federal government number as well. Obviously that's a big one.
Talk about how the Doge layoffs which again were not factored into this report, what that could mean about next month's job report and the one after that. Yeah, and it likely wasn't part of this because the Doge cuts were really ramping up in the latter parts, the middle of February, which was probably after the survey Period when these numbers were gathered. But nonetheless, we did see 10,000 in terms of contraction and federal government employment. Again, not much.
We read about that with regards to doge. But as we look towards the next month, again, maybe that next March job support, which again in about four weeks will reflect that. Again, what the White House has said, again, what the White House has said is that 75,000 federal workers accepted that fork in the road offer as a fraction of the amount of federal employees that are out there. Though baseline here, there are 3 million federal employees.
So this is just a fraction of that, really. Just kind of small beans there. But then lastly, as a portion of the old overall US workforce, federal employees only make up 1.5%. So we're talking about a fraction of a fraction of a much larger number.
Important context as we think about those DOGE cuts in the next job support. Brian Chung, you've been with us throughout the week, tells you just how much news there has been on the economy. Thank you so much. I appreciate it very much.
Garrett, I want to turn to you. You spoke to Ontario Premier Doug Ford about these tariffs. He was very upset about them when we spoke to him on Monday. The prospects of the tariffs.
What did he tell you today? He's still fired up today. Doug Ford thinks that this is essentially Donald Trump trying to destroy the Canadian economy. And he feels like it's a five alarm fire that needs a response from Canada and they're kind of getting it across the country.
There's a federal government response here, there's a provincial government response, and there's a response in everyday Canadians who we've been talking to all day. We're really having a rally around the flag kind of moment. Patriotism is up, the bicanadian movement is at the front of people's minds. And Ford is digging in and expecting this to go on for quite some time.
What do you know, Garrett, about President Trump's interactions with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau? We know they've had some pretty heated phone calls. Yeah, that's right. And Ford told me he spoke to Trudeau immediately after that phone call.
And Trudeau described the language as colorful. We both know this is the president who favors four letter words from time to time. I think it's a pretty fair assumption somewhere, deployed here in a relationship between Trump and Trudeau that has really fallen apart in his second Trump turn. It wasn't great in the first.
It's quite terrible now, but Trudeau's going to be in office for a few more days and I think it's the hope of certainly Premier Ford and some of the Canadians that we talked to today that whoever the next prime minister is here in Canada. And it's still a bit of an open question after Trudeau's party has recovered as he's been on the way out the door, what party that you know, this next PM will be in, that whoever it is will be able to forge a new personal relationship, relationship with Donald Trump. As we talked about so many times, Trump use all diplomacy as personal, one on one between him and foreign leaders. Almost any different Canadian leader will get some degree of a fresh start with Trump and that might be important to improving the brewing trade war that's happening here.
Yeah, it's a really great point. Let's talk about another point of tension between President Trump and Prime Minister Trudeau, which is this talk of making Canada a 51st state. He of course, floated this to the prime minister when they were having dinner at Mar a Lago. Everyone kind of brushed it off, but it's been clear in the weeks and months since that President Trump seems to be somewhat serious about it.
What are Canadians? What are the folks telling you about whether or not they're taking this seriously? Yeah, the Canadians I talked to say to them this started as a joke and something that they could kind of laugh off. And it became a conspiracy.
There's no way he's really serious about it. But what if he were? Now it's something that I think has created a bit of nationalist sentiment here in Canada. Folks are furious.
They're really dug in on this idea that they're nobody's 51st states. They are Canadian. There's a new ad on social media that's kind of been viral here. That's a callback to an old Molson Fear ad from like 20 years ago, but it has this K.
I won't do this justice to describing it, but I'll post it on X for people who are curious. This guy basically standing up for Canadian patriotism, you know, listing all the things that make Canada Canada and arguing it's not just some imaginary line drawn between two countries. It's a real line, a real border, a real cultural difference. And they're not going to be anybody's 51st state.
They're going to stay Canadian. That's been a universal sentiment from everyone I've talked to on the ground here in Toronto. Well, we will look to your ex account for that. Garrett Hake, thank you for recording.
Great interview. Really appreciate it. Thanks much for bringing it to us. Joining me now is Betsy Stevenson, who served on President Obama's Council of Economic Advisors and was chief economist at the Labor Department.
She's now professor of economics at the University of Michigan's Ford School of Public Policy. Thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate it. Great to talk with you today.
Michigan is obviously one of the states that is most impacted by these tariffs. What has the reaction been there in your home state? Oh, I think there's a lot of fear and concern because we have an auto industry that is just, you know, an enormous part of the state economy, and it's one that has developed over many decades to go seamlessly across the border. There may be those cultural differences with Canada, but economically, Michigan is very integrated with Canada with, you know, cars and auto parts crossing back and forth multiple times.
We can't do that if there's a 25. And certainly a month is not enough time to, you know, completely rebuild the auto industry. And so, you know, we expect layoffs if these tariffs eventually go through. I'm sure there's a lot of people who are waking up every morning wondering if today's the day that they're going to get laid off.
I guess to that point, what is the bigger concern? The tariffs themselves or the uncertainty that's creating, as you're mapping out here, its own ripple effect? You know, actually, I love that question because, you know, uncertainty is terrible, but certainty that we have huge tariffs is also terrible. So I certainly prefer the uncertainty of this week where the tariffs came on and then they went away again.
And if they come on again, I hope they go away again. So that's, you know, my preference would be a stable environment with low tariffs. But it's not clear to me that we solve the problem if we just get to the high tariffs and we're there now. Somebody might argue and say, no, no, Betsy, you're wrong, because the problem is all this uncertainty means that the businesses aren't doing the investing in the United States.
Trump wants to do this in order to encourage manufacturing investment. But we can only really make those investments if we know for sure that these tariffs are going to last a very, very long time. But the reality is, you know, Trump can't guarantee how long these tariffs are going to last. Even if he puts them on next week, we don't know that they're going to last more than a month or more than a year.
And that is going to make it hard for him to see the kind of investment that he wants, because what he essentially wants is for companies to say boy, this 25% difference in prices is so big that we can take a by building, you know, plants and factories that are very expensive for us to run in the US And I just don't know how much investment he'll actually get out of that because, you know, at the end of the day, that means charging consumers higher prices and consumers might just choose to buy less because if the prices you're facing at the store are up 25%, you're probably going to buy less. Yeah. Well, and of course, the big promise the president has made is that he's going to lower prices. I wonder how long people will give him to actually do that.
I want to get your reaction to something that the Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessant, said about the economy, the economic outlook just this morning. Take a listen. Could we be seeing that this economy that we inherited starting to roll a bit? Sure.
And look, there's going to be a natural adjustment as we move away from public spending to private spending. The and the economy had just become hooked, addicted to this government spending and there's going to be a detox period. What's your reaction? Do you agree with that assessment by the treasury secretary?
I think that the treasury secretary is doing what he needs to do to start hovering the tracks of the uncertainty and chaos that Trump is sowing in the economy. You know, the, the, the you are, you also heard then claim today that, you know, there was a lot of private sector job growth and under President Biden had been all government employees. That's simply not true. You know, we, under President Biden, we added around 10 million private sector jobs and very, very few federal government jobs.
So, you know, we had an economy that was strong in the private sector. I hope it continues to be strong in the private sector. But for example, you know, in the years coming out of the pandemic, we had the fastest rate of new business formation that we had seen this century in the United States. So to try to declare that we were hooked on government spending when we're in a period of the fastest rate of new business formation we've seen in the century, there's something that just isn't matching up there.
I think what they're trying to do is get their story straight for the inevitable slowdown that you see as everybody, you know, pulls back, waiting for the uncertainty to resolve. Betsy Stevenson, thank you so much for your insights. This should be an ongoing conversation because as you say, there are more twists and turns undoubtedly to come. Thank you so much.
Really appreciate it. Absolutely. Up next. Thank you you too.
Coming up next, chaos, cuts and the Cabinet. It's been a busy week of Oval Office updates, mass layouts and economic volatility. We'll dig into the politics and the fallout of it all. The panels now.
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For the first time since President Trump and Elon Musk began their aggressive, high speed efforts to slash the federal workforce, we are seeing signs that President Trump wants to slow down at least a little bit after meeting yesterday behind closed doors with members of the Cabinet and Elon Musk. President Trump praised Doge but said staffing cuts need to be more precise. I want the Cabinet members to keep with people. I don't want to see a big cut where a lot of good people are cut.
I want the Cabinet members to keep the good people and the people that are doing a good job, that are unreliable, don't show up to work except for those people can be cut. Now. According to new reporting from New York Times, citing five people with knowledge of that meeting between the President Musk and the Cabinet, there was a blow up in the room between Musk and Secretary of State Marco Rubio as well as a back and forth between Musk and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy and BCs K Butiers asked the president about the meeting just moments ago in the Oval Office and said there is, quote, no clash between Musk and Rubio. Okay, well, we'll delve into this.
Joining me now, I said Rhonda Colvin, senior reporter at the Washington Post, Ashanti Bohol, our Democratic strategist and president of emerged and former Pennsylvania Republican Congressman Charlie Dent. He's now an executive director and vice president at the Aspen Institute. Thanks all for being here on this very busy Friday. Rhonda, let me start with you.
The New York Times has five sources around this reporting, and what's notable is that they report that President Trump in the meeting said he does want Elon Musk to start taking a scalpel to these cuts and not a chainsaw. What do you make of the fact that for the first time, we're really seeing the president put somewhat of a fence around Elon Musk? I think we've been wondering really since the election, maybe even before the election, if there would be a point where Elon Musk may wear out his welcome, if there would be a clash. Because we do know from even watching the first Trump admin, he certainly isn't the type to want someone to overshadow him and appear to be in the lead.
So I think publicly what we saw last week with Cabinet meeting is that everyone clapped for Elon Musk. Even Trump said, you can leave if you don't like the Doge cuts. But behind the scenes, it appears there is a little bit of palace intrigue that Cabinet officials are thinking he is overstepping, which actually matches with public sentiment. It's a great point, Charlie.
You know, it's so interesting because when the administration first got underway, the big question was, how long is this relationship between Trump and Moscow going to last? People are familiar with them, say they actually get along quite well. But how much stock do you put in the fact that the president does seem to be saying for the first time, hey, wait a minute, you've got to work with Cabinet secretaries and the Cabinet secretaries get to take the lead here? Well, I think the president has sent mixed messages.
He said that the Cabinet secretaries and the agency heads are now in charge of the staff reductions. But, you know, if you don't do such a good job, well, then Elon's going to step in. And I can see why there was a clash. Rubio and Musk.
Musk. He put usaid, a related agency, the State Department, in the wood chipper. Totally blew up, an agency that Marco Rubio has always supported. He has put it in there.
So I can see why Marco Rubio was pretty hot about this since he should have some jurisdiction overall because it affects his mission of the State Department. Yeah. Oh, to be a fly on the wall in that meeting. Ashanti, what do you make of how Democrats have been responding to these cuts so far?
Do you think they have a Robust enough response. And do you think there's going to be a rally behind this idea of potentially trying to shut down the government over it? We have seen a response from government. I just want to go to Congressman Al Green.
His censure, what was he mad about? Cuts to Medicaid, to other programs. And at the end of the day, these really are eliminations. They're eliminations of jobs.
There are eliminations of programs that not only help Americans survive but thrive. So this ruckus that we see from Democrats acting up in committee, what they are doing is fighting because they want to make sure that we don't have these huge eliminations that are not for America. Since you bring it up at the table to respond as well, what did you make of what we saw from Congressman Al Green? I mean, was, it seemed to me that what was happening inside the chamber was so fascinating because to some extent it was a microcosm of the disunity right now within the Democratic Party that there's no clear strategy for this moment.
I think that the Democrats, they are looking at their district, what the people need, but still finding the moment. But when we look at Congressman Al Green, this is a man where I feel like I'm just gonna be about it. I have been serving, I am older. I have really nothing to lose.
I'm going to take this moment and for me and I know other people I talk to to they appreciated it. Just seeing that fire, that passion. Someone literally saying to the president who clearly has a disability, he has his cane, he was with his cane, is saying this is going to impact people. We saw one of our emergence, Smiley Stansbury with her sign saying this is not normal.
So what I'm seeing is Democrats taking different tactics that are getting attention. Charlie, let me play something that the chair of the nrcc, Richard Hudson, said after he met with Elon Musk about these cuts earlier this week. Take a look. I think it's real important that Republican congressmen are accessible their constituents.
If they're creating format where they can answer questions, they interact with their stipulants. I think it's really important, fundamental part of our job. Unfortunately, the Democrat Party has hijacked these in person count. Well, I don't deny that, but I can tell you I'm thrilled that Doge is exposing the spending.
They're mapping where the taxpayer dollars are going so that we as lawmakers can make actual decisions about do we think that's a useful thing for tax rate dollars and funding. So he's not denying there's been some real opposition to these cuts, whether it's in the chamber with Congressman Green or at these town halls. Charlie, do you think that members are more jittery than they're letting on, given the fact that they are hearing about, fine. They're saying this is just Democrats acting out of these town halls.
It's still their constituents. I think they're terrified. I've seen this before. I was, I was in Congress of 2017.
We saw something similar. Town halls during health care. Democrats had the same problem in 2010 during the Obamacare debates. These, these types of uprisings at these town halls are largely organized panic.
They're not, they're not great. People are angry, they're hot. And so I think many Republican members do understand they are vulnerable to viral moments when they have these town halls. So they're trying to talk to their constituents in other ways.
It may not be advisable, but politically, it might be safer for them. But this is a huge problem for Republicans. Rhonda, what are you hearing from your sources on the Hill, both in terms of Democrats response to the cuts this week and Republicans publicly at least, really digging in and saying, no, we support these cuts? Well, from Democrats have heard that they are going to try to keep revving up a grassroots effort at the constituents level to make sure that, you know, American voices are heard that these cuts are unpopular in their district and they want that to be seen.
From Republicans. We're hearing pretty much what the clip you played. I'm hearing that exact thing where publicly they're saying, you know, these cuts are good, we need government efficiency, but behind closed doors. Specifically what we heard from the meeting that Elon Musk has had with House and Senate Republicans, that they're concerned because it's a hard sell back at home when they're facing cuts.
People are calling their offices nonstop. So this all, you know, every week feels a little different, but it also feels the same. Yeah. And of course, it all comes, Charlie, against the backdrop of this volatile week on Wall Street.
CEO saying they're gonna have to hike up prices. President Trump pulling back on the tariffs. A lot of uncertainty. Well, of course, but businesses want most of all, certainly predictability and stability.
Yes, they like lower taxes, yes, they like less regulation, but they need stability. And these tariffs, as everybody knows, are gonna lead to higher prices for Americans and it'll be very disruptive to American manufacturing. Ask the auto sector, because what we import are oftentimes inputs for what we make. And the farmers are gonna probably be the heaviest burden with all this so producers are gonna suffer.
It's not gonna help American manufacturing, despite all the nonsense we keep hearing. Ashanti, does this give Democrats an opening? I'm gonna be interviewing Senator Slotkin on Sunday. I'm gonna talk.
Do you expect this to become part of the core message that we're hearing from Democrats? Absolutely. We are seeing it. People are feeling it everyday.
Americans, the impact of these tariffs. And the congressman was talking about manufacturing. Bloomberg just reported that in 30 years we're seeing the highest rates of Americans missing their monthly car payments. That's letting us know that money has to go to everyday basics.
It has to go to food. It has to go to keeping a roof over their heads. So he's talking about manufacturing and cars. People can barely afford the cars that they have now.
So this is definitely going to be something huge that you are seeing from our Democrats because Americans are angry. We don't got time to just have Democrats go to town halls and cause the ruckus like we're out here organizing when they're running. And of course, the economy, the top issue is still for photos. Guys, thanks so much.
Great conversation. Rhonda, Shanti and Charlie, appreciate it. Coming back for the break, meet the special envoy at the center of the administration top foreign policy priorities as the US Holds new talks with Ukraine and Hamas. New reporting live from Moscow is next.
You're watching THE PRESS now. Stay with us. Welcome back. President Trump today threatened to impose expanded sanctions and tariffs on Russia until it reaches a peace agreement with Ukraine.
It comes after Russia launched a massive aerial assault on Ukraine overnight, targeting the country's critical infrastructure, including its energy grid. In total, President Zelensky says Russia fired nearly 70 missiles and almost 200 drones on multiple facilities in four different regions. But while speaking to reporters in the Oval Office today, the president signal talks with Russia on a peace deal were going well but said the talks of Ukraine have been, quote, difficult. Despite this, US And Ukrainian officials are set to meet in Saudi Arabia next week to discuss first steps towards a peace agreement to end the war.
Among the officials expected to participate in that meeting, President Trump's special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, who is emerging as a critical figure in all aspects of the Trump administration's foreign policy. NBC News chief international correspondent Keir Simmons has more. He's everywhere from the Oval Office to freeing hostages in Gaza to meeting with the Russians about Ukraine. It was positive, upbeat, constructive.
Steve Wyckoff's official title is Middle east envoy, but President Trump simply calls him my dear friend and a Dealmaker Steve Wyckoff, everyone. Great job in the Middle East. Really great. Witkoff was one of the first people President Trump spoke to after his attempted assassination.
And on the day of the second attempted assassination, they were playing golf together. That deep friendship, now a working relationship. I am constantly reminded of the privilege it is to serve under the leadership of my boss, President Donald J. Trump.
After the election, Witkoff spent months flying around the Middle east on his own dime. According to Senator Lindsey Graham. By January, mobbed by well wishers in Israel's hostage square, NBC News got past his bodyguards to find him fighting to stay focused on freeing more hostages. One is coming out tomorrow.
Losing his son Andrew to opioids enables him, he says, to relate to families who lose children. A millionaire New York property developer, he's not a trained diplomat, but apparently does have a knack for diplomacy. Shaking former President Biden's hand at Donald Trump's inauguration, he had worked closely with Biden's team while always diligently giving President Trump the lion's share of the credit. Like here with hostage families.
President stands with you. The two men are in lockstep at the inauguration. Wyck of echoing the president's foreign policy. We are done carrying the financial burden for nations that are unwilling to fund their own products.
The days of blank checks are over. But there's also growing criticism. It was after Witkoff's visit to Gaza that President Trump called for the Palestinian enclave to be, quote, cleaned out. Witkoff supports that policy.
Many call it ethnic cleansing, while others who accused Wyckoff of being too close to Qatar. He did a New York property deal with the Qataris. And when Wyckoff flew to Moscow to free American hostage Mark Fogel, he says he also held a private meeting with President Putin with only translators present. The meeting ended.
I looked at my watch and it was close to three and a half hours that we were in there. We had really good. We just had a great discussion. Me and President Putin and NBC's Chief International Correspondent Keir Simmons joins me now.
What a fantastic report here. I do want to start right there. Yeah. With your deep look into Steve Witkoff.
He will be attending those talks with Ukraine and Saudi Arabia next week. Is it your sense that his portfolio is actually expanding beyond just the special envoy to the Middle East? Oh, no doubt about it. Listen, I think his key attribute is his closeness to President Putin himself.
He's this kind of soft spoken, genteel kind of seeming guy. When you speak to him, he seems so friendly, but he's also the man who says the same kind of things that President Trump says, the often kind of mind bending and did he really say that kind of stuff just in the past few days saying that the US And Israel may act together to target Hamas. When it comes to those talks with the Ukrainians and with the Russians here, I'll tell you, once you, when you talk to Russian officials here in Moscow, they are quite disparaging about it. They talk about him as not knowing very much about the situation.
The Russians would say that, of course, they are tough to negotiate and that's what the Trump administration is going to find in the weeks and months ahead. So it doesn't necessarily reflect Steve Whit possibility. But I think what he is able to achieve, I think the jury is still out on a number of levels. I think you're right about that.
And you take me to my next question. There are going to be these diplomatic talks in Saudi Arabia. US Officials at Ukrainian officials at conscious the president's threatening potentially more sanctions against Russia. How is Moscow responding to this gear?
We have less than a minute. Yeah. You know, I think that the Kremlin is probably as confused as many because just today President Trump on the one hand, as you say, saying that he finds it easier to negotiate with the Russians, on the other hand saying they're pounding Ukraine and that they need to stop or he will put in wider sanctions. The reality is, this is the real reality here in Russia.
When you talk to ordinary Russians and Russian officials, they say they do want peace, but they want it on their terms. President Trump is going to find this a tough negotiation. All right. Kirstenman's fantastic reporting as always.
Thank you. We are back on Monday with more MEET the Press now. And if it's Sunday, it's Meet the Press. On your local NBC news station.
I'll have exclusive interviews with Senator Alyssa Slotkin and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutkin. The news continues with Yasmin Vesuvian in for Hella Jackson right now. I'm Craig Nolan. Cheers.
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