Trump Fires BLS Commissioner Over Employment Data
(MENAFN) US President Donald Trump dismissed Erika McEntarfer, the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), on Friday, accusing the agency of manipulating recent employment data to undermine him.
This action came after July’s hiring numbers fell short of expectations and earlier months, May and June, were significantly revised downward.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump alleged that this week's employment statistics had been intentionally altered for political reasons, calling the data “RIGGED” to portray Republicans and himself in a negative light.
He declared, “I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY,” and added that McEntarfer would be succeeded by someone “much more competent and qualified.”
A representative from the BLS confirmed that McEntarfer “was terminated,” with Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski stepping in as acting commissioner.
The July jobs report revealed an addition of only 73,000 jobs, while revisions showed a total reduction of 258,000 jobs for May and June combined.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate experienced a slight increase, rising to 4.2%.
Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer endorsed Trump’s decision to remove McEntarfer, stressing the need for the American public to have confidence in BLS data.
Republican Senator Roger Marshall, who had previously questioned the accuracy of McEntarfer’s statistics, also commended the move, stating on X that her “cooked-up numbers have misled the American people for too long.”
Conversely, economists expressed alarm about the dismissal. Arin Dube warned on X that the firing “threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions and all government statistics.”
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