Donald Trump’s top economic adviser doesn’t believe Americans when they say they’re struggling.
The president’s director of the National Economic Council, Kevin Hassett, appeared on CNN’s The Lead on Thursday, where he was forced to answer for the results of an abysmal poll released by the network on Wednesday.
Host Pamela Brown brought up how Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had predicted on CNN last year that quarter two of 2026 would be “amazing” thanks to the administration’s Big Beautiful Bill.
“We have this poll where 77 percent of Americans say economic conditions are overall poor—that is the lowest of Trump’s second term so far," Brown told Hassett. “Is this the, quote, ‘amazing’ economy the administration thought you’d all be boasting about when the, quote-unquote, Big Beautiful Bill was passed more than a year ago?”
“Well again, right now, the economy does look amazing to me,” Hassett, 64, said. “I think you’re seeing really, really strong growth.”
Despite Hassett’s optimism, Americans feel differently.
The poll found that 70 percent of Americans disapprove of the way Trump is handling the economy, and 73 percent believe that his administration hasn’t paid enough attention to the country’s biggest issues.
Hassett defended his claims of a strong economy by saying that inflation was going down and that the unemployment rate was low. Brown, however, mentioned that the latest jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the economy added only half of the jobs that economists had predicted.
The CNN host later called attention to how 65 percent of Americans think that the president’s policies have worsened economic conditions in the U.S. Hassett didn’t buy it.
“You know, I just don’t believe a poll like that, given how strong the numbers are and how strong income growth is,” he said. “I just don’t believe that poll.”
The White House did not immediately return the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
A poll released on Wednesday by Quinnipiac University showed Trump’s approval rating hitting a record low of only 32 percent. Another AP-NORC poll on Thursday showed he was not much better at 33 percent.
The president’s approval has tanked throughout 2026, with strong opposition to his war on Iran being a major factor in Americans’ disappointment.
