Trump fires Bureau of Labor Statistics director after dismal employment report

Washington Following a report that revealed hiring slowed in July and was significantly weaker in May and June than previously reported, President Donald Trump fired the chairman of the agency that generates the monthly jobs data on Friday.

In a social media tweet, Trump claimed that the numbers were falsified for political ends and called for the dismissal of Erika McEntarfer, the former president Joe Biden’s head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. He offered no proof to support the accusation.

Trump stated on Truth Social, “I have instructed my team to fire this Biden political appointee, IMMEDIATELY.” Someone far more capable and equipped will take her place.

Later, Trump wrote: “I think today’s jobs numbers were rigged to make me and the Republicans look bad.”

Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer announced on X following his first posting that McEntarfer was no longer in charge of the bureau and that deputy commissioner William Wiatrowski would take over as acting director.

Chavez-DeRemer stated, “I encourage the President to replace Biden’s Commissioner and make sure the American people can rely on the significant and impactful data coming from BLS.”

Only 73,000 new jobs were added last month, according to Friday’s jobs report, and 258,000 fewer positions were generated in May and June than initially thought. In line with a slowdown in economic growth in the first half of the year and an increase in inflation in June that seemed to reflect the price pressures brought on by the president’s tariffs, the data suggested that the economy has weakened significantly during Trump’s presidency.

When a lousy leader receives bad news, what do they do? In a speech on Friday, Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said, “Shoot the messenger.”

Trump has attempted to disparage organizations that use unbiased statistics to evaluate the state of the economy, such as the Federal Reserve and, more recently, the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The steps are part of a larger effort to place the White House in charge of the entire executive branch, including independent organizations created to monitor the country’s well-being objectively.

Biden nominated McEntarfer in 2023, and in January 2024, he was appointed Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Usually appointed for four-year terms, commissioners are subject to termination because they are political appointees. The agency employs hundreds of career civil workers, and the commissioner is the only political appointee.

With Vice President JD Vance now among the yea votes, the Senate confirmed McEntarfer to her position 86–8.

A large portion of Trump’s anger was directed at the agency’s changes to earlier hiring numbers. In May, job gains were reduced from 125,000 to barely 19,000, and in June, they were trimmed from 147,000 to 14,000. Just 73,000 new jobs were added in July. The unemployment rate increased slightly from 4.1% to a still-low 4.2%.

Can’t anyone be that mistaken? Trump wrote, “We need accurate jobs numbers.” Someone far more capable and equipped will take her place. Such significant figures must be impartial and true; they cannot be swayed for political ends.

Since the first May data were released on June 6, when it was first reported that the economy added 139,000 jobs, Trump has not always been so dubious of the monthly jobs report and has reacted with enthusiasm.

Fantastic results, stock market booming! At the moment, Trump posted.

Later, the forecast was reduced to 125,000 jobs, and the most recent revision reduced it to only 19,000 jobs.

One of the most anticipated pieces of government economic data is the monthly employment report, which has the potential to trigger significant fluctuations in financial markets. U.S. market indices fell over 1.5% on Friday as a result of the disappointing number.

Economists and Wall Street investors with millions at stake have long considered U.S. official economic data as being free from political manipulation, even if the jobs figures are frequently the focus of political spin.

–The Associated Press/Christopher Rugber