WSJ slaps Trump over ghastly jobs report -- and blames his disastrous tariffs

The editorial board of the Wall Street Journal took President Donald Trump to task over the latest jobs report, saying his interference in markets and trade policy is damaging the economy and he needs to butt out.

Noting a meager 75,000 jobs created, the editorial gets right to the point: "President Trump understandably talks up the job creation on his watch, so he should heed Friday’s Labor report that showed a sharp pullback in hiring. The labor-market warning reinforces other evidence that the uncertainty caused by scattershot tariffs is now hurting employment as well as investment."

With Trump threatening tariffs on a whim over unrelated economic issues, the editors went to so far as to explain to the president the success former President Barack Obama had in creating jobs while pointedly stating under Trump, "The jobs trend this year is going in the wrong direction."

The WSJ editorial specifically targeted Trump's trade wars.

"The uncertainty from the risk of a multi-front trade war is sinking in. A month ago the Trump Administration was close to an agreement with China before talks collapsed and the President slapped 25% tariffs on $200 billion in goods. Then out of the blue last week Mr. Trump announced escalating tariffs on Mexico as punishment for unspecified derelictions on immigration," they wrote.

Tariffs have already slammed farm exports and income, but the effects of trade uncertainty are rippling out. Farm equipment and chemical manufacturers have reported lower orders. Businesses are delaying investment decisions. Global trade flows are slowing, and commodity prices are down," they continued, before warning darkly, "The May jobs report is a flashing yellow light that Mr. Trump needs to settle his trade wars and get back to promoting growth."

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