President Donald Trump fired the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday after a brand new jobs report confirmed a serious slowdown of hiring in current months.
In a social media publish, Trump volleyed sharp criticism and baseless accusations at Erika McEntarfer, a Biden appointee who was confirmed by the Senate in 2024.
“I’ve directed my Crew to fireside this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY,” Trump stated, after baselessly accusing McEntarfer of getting “faked” statistics.
McEntarfer has served within the federal authorities for 20 years, together with positions on the U.S. Census Bureau, the Government Workplace of the President, and the Division of Treasury, in accordance with the BLS website.
The U.S. added 73,000 jobs in July, in accordance with information from the BLS. The determine marked a slowdown from 147,000 jobs added within the earlier month. The unemployment charge ticked as much as 4.2%, retaining it at near-historic lows.
The report offered new estimates for 2 earlier months, considerably dropping the federal government’s estimate of jobs added in Could and June. The contemporary information indicated a notable slowdown in hiring as Trump’s tariffs took maintain over current months.
Trump criticized McEntarfer over the revisions, saying with out proof that the revisions urged jobs statistics had been “manipulated.” The BLS routinely revises estimates of jobs added in earlier months.
In a follow-up social media publish on Friday afternoon, Trump claimed the most recent jobs report was “RIGGED with the intention to make the Republicans, and ME, look dangerous.”
Requested by reporters as he departed the White Home on Friday concerning the cause for McEntarfer’s firing, Trump stated he believes the financial system is doing nicely and claimed the most recent jobs numbers had been “phony.”
“I consider the numbers had been phony identical to they had been earlier than the election, and there have been different occasions,” Trump stated, pointing to a earlier revision within the jobs numbers final 12 months that he claimed, with out proof, was an try to learn Democrats heading into the election. “So you already know what I did? I fired her. And you already know what? I did the best factor.”
Raymond Robertson, professor of economics at Texas A&M College, voiced alarm concerning the firing.
“That is disastrous,” Robertson stated. “To have a president who refuses to just accept the numbers after which hearth folks as a result of he doesn’t just like the numbers…that is a part of making an attempt to bend the numbers to political will.”
Whereas the Trump administration selects a alternative, BLS Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski will function performing commissioner, in accordance with a publish on X from Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
Wiatrowski served as performing commissioner of the BLS from January 2017 to March 2019, making up a big share of Trump’s first time period in workplace, the BLS website stated.
The Trump administration described the downward revisions as an unwelcome signal for the U.S. financial system.
“Clearly, they are not what we wish to see,” Stephen Miran, chair of the White Home Council of Financial Advisers, stated on Friday.
Miran blamed the weak efficiency partially on uncertainty tied to the destiny of Trump’s home spending laws in addition to the final word end result of tariff coverage. Congress handed Trump’s spending measure earlier this month; extra just lately, Trump introduced a contemporary spherical of tariffs late Thursday.
“Each of these sources of uncertainty are resolved,” Miran stated. “We count on issues to get materially stronger from right here, now that our insurance policies are beginning to kind into place.”
In Could, the U.S. added 19,000 jobs, a lot decrease than a beforehand estimated whole of 139,000 jobs, the BLS stated. Whereas in June, the financial system added simply 14,000 jobs, revising downward a earlier estimate of 147,000 jobs.
“Not solely was this a a lot weaker than forecast payrolls quantity, the monster downward revisions to the previous two months inflicts a serious blow to the image of labor market robustness,” Seema Shah, chief world strategist at Principal Asset Administration, advised ABC Information in a press release.
The roles report arrives days after a separate authorities report showed better-than-expected financial development. U.S. GDP elevated at a 3% annualized charge over three months ending in June, the report stated.
The strong studying urged the financial system has continued to avert a major tariff-induced cooldown. A one-off statistical quirk tied to a drop-off of imports appeared to partially account for the surge, nonetheless.
Some key measures of the financial system have confirmed resilient in current months, defying fears of resurgent inflation and a attainable financial downturn. Inflation has increased for 2 consecutive months however it stays nicely beneath a peak attained in June 2022.
The hiring information arrives days after the Federal Reserve opted to carry rates of interest regular at its July assembly.
5 conferences and 7 months have elapsed because the Fed final adjusted rates of interest. The federal funds charge stands between 4.25% and 4.5%, preserving a lot of a pointy enhance imposed in response to a pandemic-era bout of inflation.
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell talks to reporters following the common Federal Open Market Committee conferences on the Ate up July 30, 2025 in Washington, DC.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Photos
A significant slowdown within the labor market might immediate the Fed to grant larger consideration to a possible charge reduce.
Trump has repeatedly urged the central financial institution to decrease rates of interest, saying the coverage would increase financial efficiency and cut back curiosity funds on authorities debt.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell, against this, has voiced some concern a few rekindling of inflation as a result of elevated tariffs. Importers sometimes cross alongside a share of the upper tax burden within the type of value hikes.
Talking at a press convention in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, Powell stated tariffs had begun to contribute to cost will increase for some items however the final influence of the coverage stays unsure.
“Increased tariffs have begun to indicate by means of extra clearly into costs of some items however their total results on inflation and the financial system stay to be seen,” Powell stated. “Their results on inflation might show to be short-lived, however it’s attainable the inflation results might be extra persistent.”
He added, “We’ll do what we have to do to maintain inflation underneath management.”
ABC Information’ Selina Wang contributed to this report.
