Headline initial jobless claims rose by 224k last week - a very boring, very steady, very non-recessionary signal that the labor market is just fine despite all the partisan panic in 'soft' data surveys...

Michigan and Texas saw the biggest decline in jobless claims last week, while Oregon and Kentucky saw the biggest increase...

Nationwide continuing jobless claims continue to oscillate around 1.9 million Americans...

Of course, all eyes are on DC and the impact of DOGE. While initial jobless claims are slowing in the region (as a multitude of lawsuits stall the process of draining the swamp)...

...we note that continuing jobless claims in DC are now at their highest since 2021...

And across the Deep Tristate, jobless claims continue to rise...

So, is DOGE winning?