On The Money: Trump threatens $267B more in Chinese tariffs | Obama mocks GOP for taking credit for economy | US adds 201K jobs in strong August | Dems vow to get Trump’s tax returns if they take the House

by Sylvan Lane - 09/07/18 2:13 PM ET

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THE BIG DEAL–Trump threatens an additional $267B in tariffs on Chinese goods: President Trump said Friday that he is prepared to slap $267 billion in tariffs on Chinese products on short notice, in addition to the $200 billion he has already promised.

{mosads}Imposing tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese products “will take place very soon depending on what happens,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One, according to a White House pool report.

“I hate to do this, but behind that there is another $267 billion ready to go on short notice if I want,” he said.

That would mean tariffs would cover $467 billion in Chinese imports on top of the $50 billion already in place for a total of $517 billion, which covers the entire value of all products China imports into the United States.

The U.S. imported $505 billion of Chinese products in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

China has matched U.S. actions. After Trump’s threat of $200 billion in tariffs, China said it has tariffs of $60 billion on U.S. goods.

LEADING THE DAY

Economy adds 201K jobs in August, unemployment holds at 3.9 percent: The U.S. economy added jobs 201,000 in August, slightly above expectations, as the job market rebounded following a July slump.

The unemployment rate held steady at 3.9 percent, near an 18-year low, the Labor Department reported on Friday. Estimates had been for about 190,000 jobs to be added in August.

There were 50,000 fewer jobs in June and July than initially reported. After revisions, job gains have averaged 185,000 a month over the past three months, a sign of continued strength in the labor market.

The economy has added jobs for 94 straight months, beginning in October 2010 under President Obama. It is the longest streak of monthly jobs growth on record. The Hill’s Vicki Needham breaks down the numbers here.

Obama mocks GOP on economy: Former President Obama criticized President Trump and Republicans for taking credit for the growing economy, arguing the economic recovery began during his presidency.

Obama also mocked Republicans for praising monthly jobs report that he suggested they undersold, at best, when he was president.

“When you hear how great the economy is doing right now, let’s just remember when this recovery started,” Obama said in remarks at the University of Illinois.

“When the monthly job numbers come out suddenly Republicans are saying it’s a miracle,” he added.

Obama said his presidency saw similar numbers, after the recovery from the Great Recession that began before he arrived in office. “Actually those job numbers are the same as they were in 2015,” Obama said.

Obama delivered his remarks in a fiery speech in which he implored the public to vote in the midterms and directly criticized Trump, saying he had played on racial divisions and economic fears.

Trump hit back later on Friday, saying that he fell asleep during Obama’s speech. Trump also dismissed Obama’s claims on the economy, accusing his predecessor of overseeing the “weakest recovery in the history of our country” since the Great Depression.

Dems vow to get Trump’s tax returns if they take majority: Democrats are vowing to get their hands on President Trump’s tax returns if they are able to win back the House majority in November.

“I’m definitely going to bring it up if we don’t have them by then — that’s a definite,” Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.), a senior member of the House Ways and Means Committee, told The Hill.

The Democrats contend existing law empowers the tax-writing committees to access a president’s tax history. If the House flips, they say they’ll use their gavels to move swiftly to do just that.

“I don’t think there’s any question about it,” said Rep. John Yarmuth (D-Ky.), the ranking member of the House Budget Committee.

Reminder: Trump is the first president since Richard Nixon to refuse to disclose his tax history as a White House candidate. He says an ongoing IRS audit prevents such a release — an argument the IRS itself has refuted.

ON TAP NEXT WEEK

Wednesday:

Senate Banking Committee: Hearing entitled “Countering Russia: Assessing New Tools,” 10 a.m.

Thursday:

Senate Banking Committee: Hearing entitled “Implementation of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act,” 10 a.m.
Senate Agriculture Committee: Hearing on U.S agricultural trade, 10 a.m.
House Foreign Affairs Committee: Hearing entitled “Oversight of U.S. Sanctions Policy,” 10 a.m.
Senate Budget Committee: Hearing on transparency at the Congressional Budget Office, 10:30 a.m.

Friday:

American Enterprise Institute hosts a conference on the 10th anniversary of the 2008 financial crisis, 10 a.m.

NEXT WEEK’S NEWS, NOW

House Republicans are expected to roll out their “tax cuts 2.0′ bill next week after months of huddling on the best path forward. The bill is expected to extend the individual income tax cuts passed in the 2017 bill, but it’s unclear whether it will stretch the controversial state and local income tax deduction cap. The Hill’s Naomi Jagoda tells us what to expect here.
Congress has eight legislative days to pass nine spending bills before lawmakers recess for midterms and is expected to move a measure packaging the defense spending and the labor, health and human services and education bills next week.
Trade talks between the Trump administration and Canada will continue next week as the countries attempt to strike a deal to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

GOOD TO KNOW

The federal government took Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac into conservatorship ten years ago today.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s lead on military issues wrote an op-ed blasting the “wrong” and “dangerous” direction the Trump administration has taken on service member protection.
Whole Foods employees are pushing to unionize following layoffs and lower wages since Amazon acquired the company last year.
Financial technology poses a growing risk to the financial system because it lacks the regulatory restraints put on banks, according to a new paper released Thursday by Federal Financial Analytics.

ODDS AND ENDS

Disney and union workers on Thursday formally agreed to a deal giving employees at the Walt Disney World Resort a minimum wage of $15 an hour by 2021.
Tesla shares sunk as much as 10 percent after the company disclosed that its chief accounting officer resigned less than a month after he took the job and its human resources director won’t rejoin the firm.

Recap the week with On The Money