Trump dismisses BLS leader following underperforming July employment report
In a move that has sparked controversy, President Trump has decided to remove Erika McEntarfer as Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The decision comes after the July jobs report showed weaker-than-expected job growth, with only 73,000 jobs added compared to the predicted 100,000.
The July report, published on Friday, also saw an increase in the unemployment rate to 4.2%. This disappointing job growth has raised concerns among some members of the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors, with Chris Waller and Michelle Bowman stating that downside risks to the labor market are being overlooked.
Trump's criticism of BLS jobs data and suspicion about its accuracy has a history dating back to his 2016 campaign. The President has repeatedly expressed concern over economic data being manipulated for political purposes. However, his latest decision to remove McEntarfer, who was confirmed in 2023 with bipartisan support and is a career economist without political affiliation, has been met with criticism.
McEntarfer's firing has been confirmed by Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer, with Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski serving as interim head of the BLS. Trump has stated that he will put someone in who's going to be honest.
Trump's decision to remove McEntarfer follows his long-standing frustration with BLS figures that he claims are skewed against him or politically motivated. The President has accused McEntarfer of unfairly manipulating the data to hurt his administration or political standing, but has provided no evidence for these accusations.
Notably, the May jobs gains were revised down to 19,000 from 144,000, and June's additions were cut to just 14,000 from the 147,000 initially reported. Economists believe that July's jobs data and the revisions to May and June reflect a labor market that is weaker than previously suggested.
Meanwhile, the Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged at a range of 4.25%-4.5% on Wednesday, and traders are pricing in an 80% chance the Fed will cut rates at its September meeting. This contrasts with Trump's criticism of the Federal Reserve for lowering interest rates before the Presidential Election.
It is worth noting that Jerome Powell, the current Fed chair, was first nominated by Trump in 2017 and re-nominated by President Biden in 2021. Despite Trump's previous speculation about removing Powell from his role at the Federal Reserve, legal hurdles and statements from administration officials suggest this is unlikely.
[1] The New York Times
[2] The Washington Post
[3] The Wall Street Journal
- The controversy surrounding President Trump's removal of Erika McEntarfer as Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has been widely covered in general-news media outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal.
- The move has raised concerns among some members of the Federal Reserve's Board of Governors about the accuracy of BLS jobs data, especially with the July report showing weaker-than-expected job growth.
- Critics argue that Trump's decision to remove McEntarfer, a career economist without political affiliation, could potentially influence finance and policy-and-legislation, given the BLS's role in providing economic data.
4.Crime-and-justice reporting has also highlighted Trump's long-standing accusations against McEntarfer, accusing her of unfairly manipulating data, but with no evidence provided to support these claims.
