[Inaudible] a question?
You, you, you can't let someone so cold looking not get any [Inaudible]
No, but it'd be an easy question.
[Laughs] Okay.
[Crosstalk]
If you were to become, uh, become Fed chair --
Uh-huh.
-- would you and could you still [Inaudible]
Oh, 100%. Uh, the job of the Fed is to be independent. Uh, there's a massive economic literature that shows that independence of the Fed is really important for market confidence, for economic growth, for wage growth. And, uh, so, uh, absolutely 100% whoever the president picks needs to be 100% independent.
But that doesn't mean that you don't listen to voices. And so when I'm trying to decide what's going on in the economy, I talk to friends on Wall Street, uh, friends at the bowling alley, y- -- you talk to everybody and then you, you sort through all those, uh, observations. And that's what a Fed chair is for.
[Inaudible]
I'm sorry, can you say it again?
[Inaudible]
Oh, well, I'm not going to speculate about that because [Inaudible] hasn't decided that's what it will [Inaudible]
You have interest rates from around 2%. [Inaudible] Um, much, much longer than that. How, how would you pertain that?
Uh, obstacles we, uh, who dissented in the, that rate reduction last time, uh, just said on box business and he thinks that there's a lot more room to cut. And that's because of the really great inflation basically out just a couple days ago. And so I think that Europe's, uh, you know, ahead of the curve on interest rates, so that's one reason why the president is up.
Yeah, but a question about unemployment. I know you said that-
I'm not doing a long gaggle. She was cold and alone. [Laughs]
I won't, I won't take it long.
And I don't want to preach you. [Laughs]
Question about unemployment. I know you should think that it's misleading to cite the 4.6 because it includes so many government workers who have left-
And also increase in labor force. Yeah, increase in labor force participation.
Right.
So there's a big, a big increase in labor force participation at the same time. And so what it means is that there are more people looking for jobs. And my view is that it's consistent with the literature that government workers, uh, who separate from government employment very often find private sector jobs almost right away.
But we're not used to seeing this many government workers leave all at once. And so many of them do such specialized jobs. What if they can't find work for a while?
Well, well-
[Inaudible]
If you'd like, we can have the Council of Economic Advisors follow up with you on show me the papers. But generally, uh, what happens when government workers, it, it happens in the literature because states with their balanced budget amendments will sometimes have to, uh, uh, reductions and force for government workers.
The government workers, uh, do a great job getting reemployed because they tend to be better educated, used to showing up and work and so on. And so that's fully our expectation of what will happen with the 250,000 government workers that have been separated in federal government employment.
How long do you anticipate it'll take for all of them to find jobs to get paid work?
Um, the, the typical, uh, gap is like a month, something like that. Uh, but, but it depends on, yeah, it depends on a, a number of factors, but, but it's very, very fast. People, uh, who want to get a job after they leave employment and government very often get jobs right. So I think I got to go inside.
You guys look like [Inaudible]
Kevin, one more. Wait, I'm sorry.
Okay, one, one more question for each cold person.
In fact, I appreciate it. I'm from New England, so I don't really need to- Me too, but that doesn't change anything.
Really? I guess. [Laughs]
Question, this is, the president has been railing against insurance companies.
He just did, yeah.
Question is a long time Republican. Republicans of a long time pattern benefits of private insurance claims rather than say Obamacare. How, and you swear that recent rhetoric of the president going after private insurance companies so much do the Republican's tradition have to be?
Well, well, when I've been in there talking with him, I wasn't there today, uh, he's been really upset with the Afford Fair Act insurance policies and how expensive they are and it's very clear that what happened was that as we increase subsidies, uh, for Affordable Care Act exchange, uh, insurance programs, uh, then they just increase the price by a economic subsidy.
And so it's like when we increase of [Inaudible] then tuitions go up. And, and, and that's the thing that I've seen him, uh, be upset about as we've done. I didn't see what he said today. So last question.
Do you have anything to share on TikTok big deal that's been reached?
I do not. I'm sorry.
Okay.
So ... Oh well, sorry. Have a good one guys.
Thank you.