| | | |  | | By Bethany Irvine | | Presented by |  | | | |  | THE CATCH-UP | | | 
The national unemployment rate ticked up to 4.3 percent from 4.2 percent, marking the highest rate in four years. | AP | ON THE JOBS: The closely watched August jobs report is out, and the paltry figures signal the U.S. economy is growing more sluggish by the month. It’s a blow to President Donald Trump’s claims that his agenda is turning the economy around for Americans — but it could be a boon for his crusade for the Fed to respond accordingly. The topline: The U.S. added 22,000 jobs in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics report, well below predictions that reached up to 75,000. It’s the fourth-straight disappointing monthly report. Digging into the data: There are also flagging figures for the national unemployment rate, which ticked up to 4.3 percent from 4.2 percent, marking the highest rate in four years. The department also issued sweeping revisions to earlier numbers, indicating that the U.S. actually cut 13,000 jobs in June — marking the first time the economy lost jobs since late 2020. And in another bad sign for the White House, “manufacturers continued to shed jobs, with employment down by 78,000 this year despite the administration’s drive to promote investment and growth in that corner of the economy,” POLITICO’s Victoria Guida reports. The good, the bad: “The report comes as both elevated interest rates and Trump’s sweeping tariffs weigh on an economy that depends on consumer spending. For the first time since 2021, there are now more unemployed Americans than there are open jobs — even as the president’s immigration crackdown reduces the supply of workers,” Victoria writes. Still, the slowdown is likely to further the president’s push for the Federal Reserve to slash interest rates at their upcoming meeting. Cutting through: Fed officials will meet Sept. 16 and 17 to decide whether to cut interest rates. Though the central bank was holding off to see how Trump’s tariff battle played out, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell signaled last month that his concern for a weakening labor market likely outweighs the risk of cuts. Now, “pressure could grow for a jumbo cut this month, or a series of cuts,” Victoria notes. Banging the drum: “Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell should have lowered rates long ago. As usual, he’s ‘Too Late!’” Trump said in a post on Truth Social at 10:16 a.m. More from the White House: NEC Director Kevin Hassett acknowledged on CNBC this morning that the August numbers “were a little bit disappointing,” though he added that he expects the data will be revised up. Hassett later told Fox News that the Bureau of Labor Statistics has been dealing with “bad response rates” to job surveys. Zooming out: This is also the first jobs report to come in since Trump ousted BLS chief Erika McEntarfer over baseless accusations of data manipulation. Trump’s pick to replace McEntarfer, E.J. Antoni, is now awaiting Senate confirmation. But a new investigation from CNN’s Em Steck and Andrew Kaczynski shows that Antoni “operated a since-deleted Twitter account that featured sexually degrading attacks on Kamala Harris, derogatory remarks about gay people, conspiracy theories, and crude insults” aimed at Trump critics. AFTERNOON READ: “How a Top Secret SEAL Team 6 Mission Into North Korea Fell Apart,” by NYT’s Dave Philipps and Matthew Cole: “It is unclear how much North Korea was able to discover about the mission. But the SEAL operation is one chapter in a decades-long effort by U.S. administrations to engage North Korea and constrain its nuclear weapons programs. Almost nothing the United States has tried — neither promises of closer relations nor the pressure of sanctions — has worked.” Happy Friday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. Drop me a line at birvine@politico.com.
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Planners are avoiding using NATO forces for a new buffer zone proposal since Russian President Vladimir Putin would have to agree to a deal. | AP | 1. RUSSIA-UKRAINE LATEST: If a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine ever comes to fruition, the U.S. might take the lead role in monitoring the “large buffer zone” inside Ukraine that’s been floated by some as a way to secure the war-torn country, per NBC’s Gordon Lubold and colleagues. Our POLITICO colleagues initially reported that European leaders were floating the “buffer zone” plan. Now, a new proposal designates the U.S. as the top watchdog for a “large demilitarized area” using “drones and satellites along with other intelligence capabilities.” Other countries would also assist in monitoring the area, which “could then be secured by troops from one or more non-NATO countries, like Saudi Arabia or even Bangladesh.” The NATO issue at play: Planners are focused on avoiding “using NATO forces or anything resembling NATO branding,” since Russian President Vladimir Putin would still have to agree to the deal “and NATO involvement or even the suggestion of it is a major issue for him,” NBC notes. “Instead, some of the guarantees would be likely to rely on the troops from non-NATO countries and on a patchwork of bilateral agreements among Ukraine and its allies.” 2. IMMIGRATION FILES: Close to 500 people were arrested today in an immigration raid on a Georgia Hyundai Motor battery plant as a part of a DHS criminal investigation into employment practices, per WSJ. Of the 475 people arrested, more than 300 were South Korean nationals. The department said “those arrested had illegally crossed the border, entered through a visa waiver program that prohibited them from working or had overstayed their visas,” though no criminal charges have yet to be filed. “South Korea protested the action to the U.S. and said it was trying to secure the release of its citizens.” 3. VAX NOT: “Key NIH leader questioned vaccines, according to whistleblower complaints,” by WaPo’s Carolyn Johnson: “The complaints from Jeanne Marrazzo, the former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and Kathleen Neuzil, former director of the Fogarty International Center, allege they were retaliated against for their dissenting views on a number of issues — including their objection to the administration’s ‘hostility towards vaccines’ … Both Marrazzo and Neuzil were removed from their positions in April, placed on administrative leave and told they would be offered reassignments to positions in the Indian Health Service in remote areas.” 4. ON DEFENSE: The Trump administration is expected to reinterpret a 1987 arms-control treaty in order to unlock the sale of advanced drone technology to foreign countries, Reuters' Mike Stone scoops. The White House would effectively side-step the 1987 Missile Technology Control Regime by redesignating “drones as aircraft like the F-16 rather than missile systems ... propelling drone sales to countries like UAE and in Eastern European nations.” Among those possible transactions include the sale of 100 MQ-9 drones to Saudi Arabia. The moves comes as “U.S. drone manufacturers are facing stiff competition overseas, especially from Israeli, Chinese and Turkish rivals who often sell under lighter restrictions.”
| | | | Playbook isn’t just a read — it’s a daily listen. Jack Blanchard and Dasha Burns bring unmatched reporting and analysis on the power plays shaping Trump’s Washington. Hear the latest now. | | | | | 5. EMPIRE STATE OF MIND: As Trump presses NYC Mayor Eric Adams to wind down his reelection campaign, the White House is now dangling a surprising carrot: a potential ambassadorship to Saudi Arabia, NYT’s Dana Rubinstein and colleagues scoop. Though nothing is confirmed, special envoy Steve Witkoff “has actively pursued the matter in recent days,” including when he met with Adams in Florida this week. The details of Trump’s direct involvement remain murky and it’s unclear “whether the idea of him being nominated to the ambassadorship had the president’s backing.” Still, Adams “has told allies he is considering a range of options” — though he has insisted he would stay in the race. On the flip side: New York’s Democratic leaders, including Gov. Kathy Hochul and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, are facing mounting pressure to back democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani amid Trump’s efforts to insert his influence on the race to open up a path for Andrew Cuomo, POLITICO’s Nick Reisman and colleagues report. So far Mamdani has plowed ahead of his rivals after his Democratic primary victory, and his campaign has already reached “the $7.9 million spending cap” on the race, per NYT. Cuomo has fallen far behind, “raising the least amount of money and having the fewest donors contribute to his campaign.” 6. CONFIRMATION STATION: “Republicans to allow batches of confirmation votes,” by Semafor’s Burgess Everett: “Senate Republicans are coalescing around allowing the simultaneous confirmation of many executive branch nominees, a change based on a 2023 Democratic proposal — that would allow more confirmations than that plan’s 10-nominee limit. … However, the change wouldn’t apply to judges or Cabinet nominees. There’s also still debate over whether to limit each vote to nominees from a single committee.” 7. THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Top Trump adviser Stephen Miller is a familiar enforcer of the president’s domestic agenda, but new reporting from WaPo’s Emily Davies and Natalie Allison shows how Miller has been leading the charge on the federal takeover of the nation’s capital. “It’s his thing,” one White House official said, “Security, crime, law enforcement — it’s his wheelhouse.” Behind the scenes in the West Wing, Miller’s team “provides an updated report each morning on the arrests made the night before to staff from the White House.” Miller “has also led weekly meetings in the Roosevelt Room with his staff and members of the D.C. mayor’s office.” 8. MUSK READ: The Tesla board has proposed a package that could put CEO Elon Musk, already the world’s richest man, on track to become a trillionaire, WSJ’s Gareth Vipers and Theo Francis report. The proposal would award Musk “installments of shares if Tesla hits a series of market-capitalization and operating or financial milestones … Tesla’s board said the unprecedented pay package was aimed at keeping Musk focused on the electric carmaker.” It comes after Tesla’s sales and brand took a nosedive on the heels of “Musk’s political activities and now-frayed alliance with President Trump.”
| | | | Want to know how policy pros stay ahead? Policy Intelligence Assistant — only with POLITICO Pro — merges trusted reporting with advanced AI to deliver deeper insights, faster answers, and powerful report builders that drive action. Get 30 days free. | | | | | | | TALK OF THE TOWN | | CULINARY CORNER — WaPo food critic Tom Sietsema recently revisited Founding Farmers after his widespread zero-star review of the D.C. eatery back in 2016. The verdict now? “Founding Farmers is neither the travesty I encountered nine years ago nor my immediate response when people ask ‘Where do you like to eat downtown?’” MEDIA MOVES — POLITICO has added Leo Shane as author of Morning Defense and Audrey Decker as a reporter covering space and emerging tech. Shane previously has been a deputy editor and reporter at Military Times and is a Stars & Stripes alum. Decker previously has been an air and space reporter at Defense One. … Briana Reilly will be a defense reporter at Punchbowl News. She previously was a defense and national security reporter at Roll Call. TRANSITIONS — Anna Lowenthal is now senior comms manager at the Clinton Foundation. She most recently was director of advance for Surgeon General Vivek Murthy. … Michael Granston is now a partner at Covington. He previously was deputy assistant AG for DOJ’s civil division. … Jennifer DeCubellis will be president and CEO at America’s Essential Hospitals. She previously has been CEO of Hennepin Healthcare System. … … Blake Roberts is now a partner and co-lead of Eversheds Sutherland’s congressional investigations practice. He most recently was principal deputy general counsel at Commerce. … Jackie Wright Bonilla is now a director at Sterne, Kessler, Goldstein and Fox. She previously was deputy chief administrative patent judge with the Patent and Trademark Office’s patent trial and appeal board. Did someone forward this email to you? Sign up here. Send Playbookers tips to playbook@politico.com or text us on Signal here. Playbook couldn’t happen without our editor Zack Stanton, deputy editor Garrett Ross and Playbook Podcast producer Callan Tansill-Suddath.
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