Trump Dismisses Labor Stats Chief Over “RIGGED” Job Numbers Controversy
(MENAFN) On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump abruptly removed Erika McEntarfer, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) commissioner, accusing her of manipulating the latest employment data to damage his political standing. This dismissal came on the heels of disappointing July job gains and substantial downward revisions to hiring figures for May and June.
Trump claimed in a Truth Social post that the recent employment statistics were intentionally “RIGGED” to portray Republicans and himself unfavorably. He announced, “I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY,” adding that McEntarfer would be succeeded by an official “much more competent and qualified.”
The BLS confirmed McEntarfer’s termination, with Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski stepping in as acting head.
July’s jobs report revealed a mere 73,000 new positions, while prior months were revised downward by a total of 258,000 jobs lost. The unemployment rate edged up slightly to 4.2%.
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer backed Trump’s decision, stressing the critical need for the public to trust BLS data. Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who has criticized McEntarfer’s reporting, also endorsed the firing, tweeting that her “cooked-up numbers have misled the American people for too long.”
Meanwhile, economists voiced alarm over the move. Arin Dube cautioned on X that the dismissal “threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions and all government statistics.”
A bipartisan coalition, including former BLS commissioners William Beach (appointed by Trump) and Erica Groshen (appointed by Obama), condemned the firing. They said the justification “undermines the credibility of federal economic statistics.”
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer slammed the action as well: “What does a bad leader do when they get bad news? Shoot the messenger.”
The monthly employment report wields significant influence over financial markets, which dropped roughly 1.5% after the announcement. Notably, Trump’s skepticism toward these numbers has been inconsistent: he initially praised May’s data when it showed 139,000 jobs added, posting “GREAT JOB NUMBERS, STOCK MARKET UP BIG!” That figure was later revised downward twice—first to 125,000, then drastically to just 19,000.
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
