The former president has claimed recent economic data was manipulated for political gain.
Donald Trump dismissed Erika McEntarfer, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) commissioner, alleging the latest job figures were rigged against him. This action followed the release of weaker-than-anticipated July hiring numbers and substantial downward revisions for May and June.
In a Truth Social post, Trump asserted the employment numbers released this week were deliberately skewed to damage him politically, labeling them as “RIGGED” to make Republicans and himself “look bad.” He stated he had instructed his team to immediately fire McEntarfer, a Biden appointee, and replace her with someone “much more competent and qualified.”
A BLS spokesperson confirmed McEntarfer “was terminated,” with Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski stepping in as acting commissioner.
The July jobs report indicated an addition of only 73,000 jobs, while revisions showed a total reduction of 258,000 jobs for May and June. The unemployment rate saw a slight increase to 4.2%.
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer voiced her support for Trump’s decision, stressing the importance of ensuring the American public’s trust in BLS data. Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who had previously questioned McEntarfer’s statistics, also commended the move, stating on X that her “cooked-up numbers have misled the American people for too long.”
Economists have voiced concerns over the dismissal, with Arin Dube cautioning on X that it “threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions and all government statistics.”
A bipartisan group, including former BLS commissioners William Beach, a Trump appointee, and Erica Groshen, appointed by Barack Obama, jointly condemned McEntarfer’s firing. They released a statement saying the rationale “undermines the credibility of federal economic statistics.”
Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer also criticized Trump’s decision, stating: “What does a bad leader do when they get bad news? Shoot the messenger.”
The monthly jobs report has a significant impact on financial markets, which experienced a roughly 1.5% downturn following the announcement. Trump has not always been critical of these reports; he previously praised the May data released in June, which initially showed 139,000 jobs added, posting: “GREAT JOB NUMBERS, STOCK MARKET UP BIG!” However, that figure was later revised down to 125,000, and then drastically to just 19,000.
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