Treasury Secretary Mnuchin Indicates the Trump Administration Blew It By Paying Unemployed More Than They Were Getting at Their Former Jobs

Steve Mnuchin

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said Thursday on CNBC that any extension of enhanced unemployment insurance would cap benefits at levels under what the unemployed were receiving at jobs where they were laid off. It is a tacit admission that paying unemployed more than what they were getting at jobs was a mistake.

“We were in an emergency. We went along with that [paying unemployed people more than they were getting at work],” Mnuchin said. [But now,] "we're going to make sure that people are incented to go back to jobs,” he continued.

By paying people more than what they received at work, as I have pointed out before, there was no incentive for people to go to work and there was no pressure by the unemployed on state and local officials to end the lockdowns.

If what Mnuchin is saying is accurate that will change at the end of July.

-RW