“Is this supposed to be a brag?” said US Rep. Mark Pocan.

National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett on Wednesday tried to put a rosy spin on President Donald Trump’s economy by highlighting the large credit card bills being racked up by US consumers.

During an interview on Fox Business, Hassett cited credit card spending as a purported sign of strength in the economy as a whole.

“I had the head of one of the Big Five banks in my office yesterday, going through credit card data,” he said. “Credit card spending is through the roof! They’re spending more on gasoline, but they’re spending more on everything else too.”

Hassett on American consumers: “Credit card spending is through the roof. They’re spending more on gasoline, but they’re spending more on everything else too.” pic.twitter.com/zayCSaxhwr

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 6, 2026

not hide his disgust at Hassett’s performance.

“He’s smiling,” Wellman observed. “He’s celebrating that we are all maxing out our credit cards because they have torched the economy. He’s not smiling for working people. He’s happy for the corporations and billionaires. It’s good for them. We can all die poor. This is why I’m running for Congress.”

Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Wis.) expressed bewilderment at Hassett’s argument.

“Is this supposed to be a brag?” Pocan asked.

Jon Favreau, former speechwriter for President Barack Obama and current co-host of Pod Save America, found Hassett’s messaging so tone-deaf that “we must consider the possibility that Kevin Hassett is secretly working for the Democrats.”

The Democratic House Majority Political Action Committee had a response similar to Favreau’s, recommending that the GOP make Hassett “the spokesperson for the entire Republican Party.”

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  costs, food, fuel, increase