‘They Poll Way Too Many Democrats’: Trump’s Economic Council Director Challenges Fox News Polling On Air

Kevin Hassett, the National Economic Council director under the Trump administration, took issue with Fox News' polling on Sunday during an interview with Peter Doocy on "The Sunday Briefing." Doocy referenced a Fox News poll that indicated a disheartening 23% of American voters perceived the economy as "excellent or good," 12% believed their personal finances were "getting ahead," and a substantial 62% saw grocery prices as a "major problem."

Hassett dismissed the poll results as having a liberal bias, stating, "Polls, over and over again, harm impressions about the economy because they poll way too many Democrats." This remark came after Doocy challenged Hassett's assertions, prompting the National Economic Council director to respond with a barrage of positive statistics.

He highlighted a 5% GDP growth rate, the lowest unemployment insurance claims ever recorded, and the most significant decline in drug prices in 64 years. Despite these claims, the U.S. economy grew at a modest 1.5% in the second quarter, according to the New York Times, and unemployment insurance claims have remained within a historically narrow range of 200,000 to 230,000 per week, as reported by the Associated Press.

Hassett also claimed that drug prices had seen their biggest decline in 64 years, a point that PBS later attributed to factors including increased competition and a policy enacted during Biden's presidency that enables Medicare to negotiate drug prices. Hassett further noted a decrease in consumer prices, pointing to the reduced price of hamburgers in his local grocery store and the notable increase in beef prices over the year. However, consumer prices as a whole are on the rise, currently at 3.4% year-over-year.