Donald Trump has fired the head of the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) after a report showed the economy added just 73,000 jobs in July, far fewer than expected. The president claimed without evidence that the figures were “rigged” to make him look bad, asserting that the economy was “booming” under his watch.
The dismissal of Erika McEntarfer, who was confirmed as BLS commissioner in January 2024 under Joe Biden, has drawn sharp criticism from senior Republicans. Senator Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming said firing the statistician because he did not like accurate numbers was a problem, calling the move “impetuous”. Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina said if the firing was simply due to disliking the numbers, “they ought to grow up”.
Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky questioned whether the firing would improve the statistics, noting that “you can’t really make the numbers different or better by firing the people doing the counting”. Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska remarked that the jobs numbers could not be trusted, adding that firing people makes trust even worse.
William Beach, a former BLS commissioner appointed by Trump in his first term, called the firing “totally groundless” and said it set a dangerous precedent. A letter from the Friends of the Bureau of Labor Statistics accused Trump of seeking to blame someone for bad news and said the dismissal “undermines the credibility of federal economic statistics”.
Democrats also condemned the move. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont described it as “the sign of an authoritarian type”, saying it would make it harder for the American people to believe government information. The jobs report also included a downward revision of 258,000 jobs for the previous two months and data showing slowing economic output and consumer spending.
