Today in one sentence: White House adviser Kevin Hassett defended Trump’s firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics chief, but offered no evidence to support the claim that jobs data was "rigged"; Texas Democrats fled the state to block Republicans from redrawing the state’s congressional map under pressure from Trump that would shift five U.S. House seats to Republicans; New York and California said they will pursue new congressional maps to offset Republican redistricting efforts in Texas; the Congressional Budget Office said Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” will increase the federal deficit by $4.1 trillion over 10 years and raise debt interest payments by $718 billion; Corporation for Public Broadcasting will shut down after Trump and Congress eliminated its federal funding; and Trump’s Transportation Secretary ordered NASA to fast-track plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030.

1/ White House adviser Kevin Hassett defended Trump’s firing of the Bureau of Labor Statistics chief, but offered no evidence to support the claim that jobs data was “rigged.” He called the routine revisions “hard evidence” and admitted that Trump just “wants his own people there” to make the numbers “more transparent and more reliable.” Hassett described the data as “very unreliable” and blamed lingering pandemic issues, but didn’t explain how a new appointee would fix it. Nevertheless, he claimed the agency failed to justify the changes, saying, “I’ve never seen revisions like this,” but didn’t say whether the White House asked for clarification before removing Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, who he still called “a terrific person.” (Washington Post / CNN / CNBC / NBC News / Axios / The Hill / Washington Post)

  • 🗓️ WEEKEND NOTABLES:

  • U.S. employers added 73,000 jobs in July, while May and June totals were revised down by 258,000, cutting combined job growth over three months to 33,000 – the weakest stretch since the 2020 recession. The unemployment rate rose to 4.2%. Health care and social assistance accounted for nearly all job gains. Federal employment, meanwhile, fell by 12,000 and is down 84,000 since January. (CNN / CNBC / Washington Post / New York Times / Wall Street Journal / Associated Press / NBC News)

  • Trump fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics hours after the release of a jobs report, accusing the agency of “suppressing real numbers” and claiming the report was a “scam,” “fake,” and “meant to damage me politically.” He called the data “rigged garbage” and said career officials were “trying to sabotage the economy.” No president has ever removed a BLS commissioner over an official jobs report. Trump also escalated pressure on the Federal Reserve, attacking Jerome Powell as “Too Late Powell” and demanding immediate rate cuts. “IF HE CONTINUES TO REFUSE, THE BOARD SHOULD ASSUME CONTROL,” Trump posted on social media, calling on the Fed board to override Powell ahead of its September meeting. He added: “We cannot wait. The damage is already being done.” (New York Times / Axios / Washington Post / NBC News / Politico / CNN / Bloomberg / Wall Street Journal / Associated Press / CNBC)

  • Federal Reserve Governor Adriana Kugler will resign on August 8, creating an early vacancy on the board that Trump can immediately fill. Kugler’s term was set to end in January 2026, but her departure gives Trump a chance to shift Fed leadership months ahead of schedule. Trump called the opening “very happy” news and claimed Kugler stepped down because she disagreed with Powell. Her exit follows Trump’s repeated public demands for the Fed to cut interest rates and remove Powell. (Bloomberg / Washington Post)

2/ Texas Democrats fled the state to block Republicans from redrawing the state’s congressional map under pressure from Trump that would shift five U.S. House seats to Republicans. Their departure denied the Texas House the quorum needed to vote, prompting Gov. Greg Abbott to authorize civil arrest warrants and threaten to remove absent lawmakers from office. “This truancy ends now,” Abbott said, calling the move an “abandonment” of elected duties and warning that accepting donations to cover daily fines may constitute bribery. Democrats, now in Illinois, New York, and Massachusetts, said they will stay out until the special session ends on Aug. 19 and called the maps “rigged.” House Speaker Dustin Burrows said, “All options will be on the table.” (New York Times / Washington Post / Bloomberg / Politico / Bloomberg / NBC News / ABC News / Associated Press / Texas Tribune / Texas Tribune / Washington Post / Politico / CNN)

3/ New York and California said they will pursue new congressional maps to offset Republican redistricting efforts in Texas. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said she is exploring ways to redraw the state’s map and called its independent commission “a vestige of the past.” California Gov. Gavin Newsom confirmed plans to put a redistricting measure on the November ballot that could wipe out several Republican-held districts. Both governors framed their actions as responses to Trump-backed Republican tactics, with Hochul calling it a “war” and Newsom saying the maps would only take effect “if Texas changes its map.” (Politico / Politico / New York Magazine / Washington Post / The Hill / Wall Street Journal / New York Times)

4/ The Congressional Budget Office said Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” will increase the federal deficit by $4.1 trillion over 10 years and raise debt interest payments by $718 billion. The CBO had initially projected a $3.4 trillion deficit increase before Republicans reworked the bill to pass it in the Senate. The law includes major tax cuts and new spending with no offsets, which the CBO said will raise interest rates and borrowing costs “for the federal government and other borrowers.” The agency warned the total cost could reach $5 trillion if temporary tax breaks are made permanent. (Politico / ABC News)

5/ The Corporation for Public Broadcasting will shut down after Trump and Congress eliminated its federal funding. The $1.1 billion rescission signed into law last month removed the CPB’s entire budget for the next two years. Most of its roughly 100 employees will be laid off by Sept. 30, with a small team staying on through January to wind down operations. The closure ends CPB’s nearly 60-year role in funding local NPR and PBS stations, licensing music for classical and jazz radio, supporting emergency alerts in 25 states, and backing educational shows like Sesame Street. “Despite the extraordinary efforts of millions of Americans […] we now face the difficult reality of closing our operations,” CPB CEO Patricia Harrison said. Trump, meanwhile, called CPB “a biased, taxpayer-funded scam” and wrote, “REPUBLICANS HAVE TRIED DOING THIS FOR 40 YEARS, AND FAILED […] BUT NO MORE.” (Poynter / NPR / CNN / Axios / CBS News / NBC News / Politico / New York Times / Associated Press / Washington Post)

The midterm elections are in 456 days.

✏️ Notables.

  1. The White House has no plans to mandate insurance coverage for in vitro fertilization, despite Trump’s campaign promise to expand access. In 2024, Trump said “The government is going to pay for it, or we’re going to get — we’ll mandate your insurance company to pay for it.” The White House now claims legal limits block such a mandate without a new law, and no legislation is in progress. The administration is also stepping back from proposals to require coverage through the Affordable Care Act exchanges. (Reuters / USA Today / Washington Post)

  2. The Department of Veterans Affairs moved to ban nearly all abortions at VA hospitals, revoking a Biden-era rule that allowed abortions in cases of rape, incest, or health risks. Under the new rule, abortions would only be allowed if a physician certifies the life of the mother is at risk. The VA called the previous rule “politically motivated” and said the new policy aligns with “historical norms.” The Trump administration claimed the Biden-era policy created a “purported Federal entitlement to abortion for veterans where none had existed before.” The proposal is open for public comment until early September. (Washington Post / CNN / Navy Times)

  3. The State Department will require some foreign visitors to pay up to $15,000 to enter the U.S. under a 12-month pilot program set to begin August 20. The program targets business and tourist visa applicants from countries with high overstay rates or weak vetting systems. Consular officers will set bond amounts, with adults expected to pay $10,000 and children $5,000, though that can vary based on financial hardship or risk level. Travelers who comply with visa terms will get their bond refunded. The State Department said the move “reinforces the Trump administration’s commitment to enforcing U.S. immigration laws and safeguarding U.S. national security.” (New York Times / Politico / Associated Press)

  4. Ghislaine Maxwell was transferred to a minimum-security federal prison camp in Texas. The move came days after Maxwell, who was convicted for helping Jeffrey Epstein abuse underage girls, met privately with Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, a former Trump defense lawyer, for two days of undisclosed discussions. Federal policy prevents such transfers for sex offenders without a waiver, which Bureau of Prisons officials have refused to acknowledge granting. (Politico / NBC News / CNN / Associated Press / CBS News)

  5. The FBI redacted Trump’s name from the Epstein files during a final review before deciding not to release more documents. The redactions were reportedly based on privacy exemptions, since Trump was a private citizen when the Epstein investigation began. In July, the DOJ and FBI issued a joint statement saying “no further disclosure would be appropriate or warranted.” (Bloomberg)

  6. Trump’s acting head of the Office of Special Counsel opened an investigation into Jack Smith, the former prosecutor who led two federal cases against Trump. The agency is reviewing whether Smith violated the Hatch Act, a law limiting political activity by federal employees. The probe began after Sen. Tom Cotton, without evidence, accused Smith of trying to influence the 2024 election. Smith dropped both cases after Trump’s win and left government in January. (Politico / CNN / NBC News / Washington Post / Associated Press / Wall Street Journal)

  7. The Smithsonian will restore information about Trump’s two impeachments to its presidential history exhibit “in the coming weeks,” after removing a placard in July. The exhibit, unchanged since 2008, previously listed only Johnson, Nixon, and Clinton as facing removal. The Smithsonian said the Trump placard “did not meet the museum’s standards” and was “not consistent” with other sections, but denied removing the display due to political pressure. Trump recently signed an executive order directing the Smithsonian to remove “improper ideology.” (Washington Post / NBC News / CNN / NPR)

  8. In a social media post, Trump ordered two nuclear submarines to reposition near Russia “just in case” after former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev referenced Moscow’s last-resort nuclear launch system. Trump called Medvedev’s statements “foolish and inflammatory” and warned him to “watch his words,” saying “words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences.” Medvedev, meanwhile, responded that if Trump was “so jittery,” then “Russia must be completely in the right.” (New York Times / Axios / Politico / Reuters / CNBC / The Atlantic)

  9. Trump’s Transportation Secretary ordered NASA to fast-track plans to build a nuclear reactor on the moon by 2030. Sean Duffy, who Trump named interim NASA administrator in July, directed the agency to seek industry proposals and assign a program lead within 60 days. (Politico)

Five years ago today: Day 1293: "It is what it is."