Kevin Hassett, Director of the White House National Economic Council, Joins ‘Varney & Co.’ to discuss the November CPI report, tax refunds, an expected White House announcement on housing reform and more.
A leading candidate to become President Trump’s next Federal Reserve chairman said the administration expects bigger tax refunds and higher take-home pay next year as many Americans continue to express concerns about affordability.
“We expect that part of it alone will be worth a few thousand dollars in reimbursement… the numbers are striking.”
LABOR SECRETARY downplays warning signs, insists labor market is ‘STRENGTHENING’ DESPITE RISING UNEMPLOYMENT
During his speech on Wednesday evening, President Trump said the government expects “the biggest tax refund season of all time” next spring and that many families would save between $11,000 and $20,000 annually.
The Trump administration expects the largest tax refund cycle “in history” in the spring of 2026. (Getty Images)
“You saw in the jobs report that … wages for the average worker rose by 3.7%. So if you implement wage increases of 3.7% at core inflation of 1.6%, real wages will grow by about 2%. [to] 2.5%. According to our current estimates, workers have already seen a pay increase of almost $2,000 this year after inflation, because wages are growing so much faster than prices,” Hassett explained.
“The Big Money Show” panel previews President Donald Trump’s major primetime economic speech as Treasury Department officials unveil the rollout of the “Trump Accounts” and point to improved jobs data.
“I think what happens in the end – and this is what happened the first time [Trump] term – is that people will see it in their pockets,” he continued. “We didn’t adopt ‘Big, Beautiful Bill’ until mid-summer. And so a lot of the tax changes that impact last year were not on the tax forms that people filled out at the beginning of the year.”
Overall, Hassett struck a bullish tone on the economy, pointing to what he described as a “blockbuster” inflation report for November, with data coming in cooler than economists expected.
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“The Big Money Show” panel discusses President Donald Trump’s sharp economic message, cooling inflation, rising real wages and why Americans are still feeling no relief despite the improving numbers.
“What’s happened is, as we’ve been predicting throughout, if you really target aggregate supply, that’s going to put downward pressure on prices,” he said.
“And remember, that’s where we were last during President Trump’s first term. We grew around 3%, and we had inflation around 1%. And it looks like we’re back there now.”
