“The U.S. labor market is steadily losing steam as evidenced by the staggering downward revisions and a declining labor force participation rate,” Bullard added. This slowdown should feed through to hiring and business investment activity, and lead to soft, yet still positive, GDP growth in the second half of the year.”

Hassett's statements during his interview appearance on NBC News' Meet the Press shows that the White House intends to hold steady on its tariffs even as economic data raises concerns about the impact they may have on growth, prices, and job creation as well as lasting consequences for global trade.

On Wednesday, new GDP numbers showed that in the first half of the year, the economy grew at an annual rate of less than 1.3 percent. On Thursday, new inflation numbers showed that the personal consumption expenditures price index jumped by 2.