Following a jobs report that showed the labor market slowing, Donald Trump took aim at the statistics themselves.
In a Truth Social post, Trump said he was directing his team to fire the Commissioner of Labor Statistics, Erika McEntarfer, nominated for the role by Joe Biden. Without offering any evidence, he alleged that “faked” jobs numbers before the election to help Kamala Harris, and that she should be “replaced with someone much more competent and qualified.”
Earlier on Friday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in its monthly jobs report, estimated that just 73,000 jobs were created in July, and its revised figures for previous months to show that May job growth was just growth in May was just 19,000, while June hiring was just 14,000. The BLS typically revises previous months’ data, as more data comes in, and noted that this revision was higher than normal.
Trump did not complain about the figures when they were released in previous months, showing better-than-expected figures and revisions upward.
But economists have noted that the economy was grappling with the uncertainty of Trump’s tariff policy, as well as more restrictive immigration policies, that have put outlooks in flux.
The monthly jobs data has been prized by economists for its independence from political interference.
Jason Furman, a professor at Harvard, wrote on X that Trump’s moves threaten to politicize the data.
Furman, who was chair of President Barack Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers, wrote, “This is awful. Reliable economic data is a key strength of the US economy. When Argentina and Greece faked economic data it contributed to major crises. I don’t think Trump will be able to fake the data given the procedures. But there is now a risk plus an awful appearance.”
He added, “The internal logic of the conspiracy allegations is also bizarre. He claims Biden HELPED himself by publishing initial high numbers & then announcing a downward revision. Now BLS is HURTING Trump by publishing initial high numbers & then announcing a downward revision?”
Trump has been attacking another figure who has championed independence from politics, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell. The president has insulted Powell’s judgment as he has put pressure on him to lower interest rates. But the Federal Reserve kept rates steady in their meeting this week, and analysts have warned that any Trump attempt to fire him would shake financial markets.
