In the final sprint of the U.S. presidential election, Democratic candidate Harris and Republican candidate Trump are competing in the important swing state of Michigan, focusing on hot topics such as immigration.
On November 1 local time, Trump fiercely criticized the latest non-farm report at a rally in Michigan, calling it "the worst employment report in our country's history."
Data released by the U.S. Department of Labor that day showed that only 12,000 jobs were added in October, the slowest growth since 2020, far below the expected 100,000, with the unemployment rate remaining at 4.1%.
"We have breaking news, which is actually bad news, bad news for the country. The newly announced employment report conclusively proves that Harris and Biden have driven the U.S. economy off a cliff," Trump said to supporters in Warren, Michigan.
"If she serves another four years, your family will never be able to recover from this economy under these stupid people," he added.
Trump also criticized the 12,000 figure in the non-farm report as "pitiful," claiming, "I have never heard of 12,000 jobs."
Trump spokesperson Caroline Levitt also stated in a press release that Friday's job growth was a "disaster," and the report clearly revealed "how Kamala Harris has severely damaged the U.S. economy."
In fact, the outside world had already mentally prepared for this significantly cooling employment report. Due to the impact of hurricanes and strikes, the October non-farm data would show some distortion.
Jared Bernstein, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, pointed out in a media interview on Friday that two powerful forces (hurricanes and strikes) have had a negative and temporary impact on job growth.
Meanwhile, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce on Wednesday, the annualized growth rate of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the third quarter was 2.8%, slightly below market expectations, but still demonstrating the resilience of the U.S. economy.
After suffering from several years of inflation, the vast majority of American voters see the economy as a top priority in the election. Both Trump and Harris claim that their economic agendas are the most beneficial for the American people.
Michigan, located in the Great Lakes region, is part of the U.S. manufacturing-heavy "Rust Belt," holding 15 electoral votes in the presidential election. The highly divided public opinion makes Michigan one of the 7 key swing states in the presidential election and one of the 3 "blue wall" states that Democrats must protect. Given that Michigan's electoral vote weight is as high as 16% among swing states, Harris's chances of winning will significantly increase if she loses in the state.