Outlook for young Americans 'really awful' as Trump’s 'SOL' economy takes hold: conservatives

President Donald Trump insists that the American economy is booming under him, but a pair of conservative commentators discussed on Friday how unemployed people are “SOL” right now.

“If you are among the unlucky people who don't have a job, you are basically SOL,” Catherine Rampell told Sam Stein for the conservative website The Bulwark. After explaining that she does not believe America is technically in a recession right now, Rampell argued that “we've lost jobs in, whatever it is, like six of the last twelve months at this point. And if you look at, for example, job gains among younger people, they look really awful. So there are certain pockets of the population that have been hurt worse than others.”

Rampell also described how people with college degrees and blue collar workers are both being laid off and finding it hard to get new work in the current economy. Part of this is AI and “partly just that we're in a low-hiring, low-firing environment right now because there's so much uncertainty in the economy,” Rampell explained. “Lots of businesses are just holding off on all plans, many of them because there's a lot of uncertainty about specific things like tariffs.”

Overall Rampell explained that “there's a lot of uncertainty in the economy. The overall numbers suggest very low hiring and also low firing — just not that much churn in the economy.”

Rampell is not alone among conservatives in disagreeing with Trump’s rosy depiction of his second term economy. The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board argued earlier this month that “there’s no denying the February report was lousy. The U.S. shed 92,000 jobs and revised down gains for January and December by a combined 69,000. The question is what to make of the declines.” Placing at least part of the blame on Trump’s unilaterally-levied tariffs, the board added that “if Mr. Trump wants a tax-cut boost for the economy while the war continues, he could call off his new 15% universal tariff. Consider it our contribution to easing everyone’s economic anxiety.”

Similar to Rampell and the Journal’s editorial board, The Bulwark’s Mona Charen also wrote in February that Trump’s tariffs are harming ordinary Americans — and that this could cost Republicans politically in the upcoming midterm elections.

“Voters are rarely able to connect policy to outcomes, but they have done so in the case of tariffs,” Charen argued. “Back in 2024, Americans were about equally divided on the question of trade, with some favoring higher tariffs and roughly similar numbers opting for lower tariffs. Experience has changed their views.”

Even elected Republicans are pushing back against Trump’s economic policies, at least in small part. Six Republicans joined the 213 out of 214 Democrats in voting to repeal Trump’s anti-Canada tariffs last month including Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Jeff Hurd (R-Colo.), Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.), Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.)

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