President Donald shut down NBC News host Tom Llamas when he pushed an artificial intelligence (AI) job-loss narrative during a segment that did not air on “Nightly News with Tom Llamas” on Wednesday.
During the extended interview posted to YouTube on Wednesday, Llamas insisted that AI was “killing” numerous jobs. Trump disagreed and asserted that a record number of Americans were currently employed.
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“AI has already started to take jobs because the technology’s there,” Llamas said.
“We have, it was just announced, more jobs right now occupied in the United States of America than at any time during its existence, 250 years,” Trump retorted. “There are more people working today than at any time in the history of our country. Pretty good stat.”
Llamas stuttered in response.
“That kills that question,” Trump quipped. “That’s a good answer. That kills that question.”
The NBC News host continued by noting many Americans were worried about AI eliminating jobs, but Trump expressed optimism.
“They said the internet was gonna do — everything was gonna do,” the president said. “Robots are gonna kill jobs. Everything’s gonna kill jobs. And you end up, if you’re smart, doing great.”
Several analysts told the Daily Caller News Foundation in January that increasing American AI adoption could significantly disrupt the job market and take certain entry-level jobs.
Nearly 80% of Americans agreed that the “stigma” surrounding trade or blue-collar work was “declining” as employers increasingly placed value on hands-on skills, Business Insider reported, citing a Tuesday poll conducted by The Harris Poll and commissioned by the Business for Good Foundation. About 75% of Americans agreed that “jobs that rely on hands-on experience are less likely to be replaced by AI.”
AI was “responsible” for over 50,000 announced American job reductions in 2025, according to a report from global outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas published on Jan. 8. U.S.-based employers had referenced AI as a reason for 71,825 layoffs in total since 2023, the report found.
Moreover, National Economic Council (NEC) Director Kevin Hassett warned on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in November that AI was creating a “quiet time” in the labor market as it diminished the necessity of entry-level workers.
However, Trump’s claim of a record number of Americans being employed appeared to be accurate, according to YCharts. The data recorded about 164 million Americans employed in December, a slight uptick from January 2025 and a significant increase from about 150 million in February 2021.
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