WASHINGTON (BN24) — President Donald Trump on Friday removed the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics following the release of a disappointing July employment report, accusing the agency’s leadership of manipulating data for political reasons and undermining public trust in a cornerstone of U.S. economic policy.
The firing of Commissioner Erika McEntarfer — a Biden appointee confirmed by the Senate in 2023 — came hours after the latest jobs report revealed only 73,000 positions were added last month, with sharp downward revisions to May and June data totaling 258,000 fewer jobs than previously estimated.
“This Biden Political Appointee must be fired IMMEDIATELY,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified.” The president offered no evidence that the numbers were manipulated but later doubled down, calling the figures “RIGGED” and alleging they were designed to “make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.”
McEntarfer’s abrupt ouster marks a rare and controversial intervention into a federal agency widely viewed as independent and data-driven. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, whose monthly jobs data is closely watched by Wall Street and policymakers alike, has long maintained a reputation as an impartial source of economic measurement.
In a follow-up post, Trump emphasized the revisions to May and June as grounds for dismissal. “No one can be that wrong,” he wrote. “Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate — they can’t be manipulated for political purposes.”
The July report also showed the unemployment rate ticking up slightly to 4.2% from 4.1%, amid broader signs of a slowing U.S. economy and rising inflation — dynamics some analysts have tied to Trump’s aggressive tariff policies.
In a statement following Trump’s post, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer confirmed that McEntarfer was no longer heading the BLS and named Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski as acting director. “I support the President’s decision to replace Biden’s Commissioner and ensure the American People can trust the important and influential data coming from BLS,” she said on X.
Trump’s sweeping move prompted immediate backlash from economists and lawmakers. “Firing the Commissioner … threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions,” warned Arin Dube, an economist at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst. “I can’t stress how damaging this is.”
Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer was blunt: “What does a bad leader do when they get bad news? Shoot the messenger.”
Despite now rejecting the jobs data, Trump had previously praised the very same numbers when the preliminary May report initially showed 139,000 jobs added. “GREAT JOB NUMBERS, STOCK MARKET UP BIG!” he posted on June 6. That number was later revised downward — first to 125,000, and now to just 19,000.
The BLS jobs report is one of the most sensitive economic indicators in the U.S., with early copies of the report stored in secure safes to prevent leaks. Revisions are a routine part of the monthly process, as more survey responses arrive over time. Economists note that slower reporting by businesses in recent years has led to larger-than-usual monthly adjustments.
Even so, Trump’s decision to remove the BLS commissioner over routine statistical revisions has sparked deep concern among economists, many of whom fear long-term damage to the credibility of U.S. economic reporting.
