In an unexpected move, on Friday, President Donald Trump fired Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Commissioner Erika McEntarfer. He made this move after her office was accused of inflating job growth statistics in order to protect her political ambitions. The abrupt firing comes on the heels of an unexpectedly strong September jobs report. That’s because this report featured significant downward revisions in job growth data for the last two months, calling into question the integrity of government statistics.
Kevin Hassett, Chair of the Council of Economic Advisers came to the decision’s defense. The overall scope of those revisions, he argued, fueled larger concerns over the accuracy of that data. The revisions themselves, I mean, those are hard evidence,” Hassett said, suggesting that they needed to be examined further. What he failed to address is whether or not McEntarfer was requested to respond to the differences prior to her firing.
Economists and analysts across the board reacted with shock and dismay at McEntarfer’s dismissal, pointing to its potential to erode public confidence in government data for years to come. In a March 2022 statement, then–former BLS Commissioner William Beach, appointed by Trump, condemned the decision as “completely unfounded.” He cautioned that it creates a “dangerous precedent” that puts the Bureau’s statistical mission in jeopardy.
All that said, Hassett underscored the importance of these revisions, calling them a “historically important outlier.” He noted that these changes will likely lead to further revisions to yet-to-be released future job data. He continued, “If we see substantial changes and revisions, as we did in September, we want to know why those changes were made. We need breathtaking clarity.” However, contrary to these claims, Hassett did not deliver a shred of proof that the most recent jobs report was indeed “rigged,” as Trump alleged.
The controversy surrounding McEntarfer’s dismissal raises questions about the administration’s approach to economic data. Remember, Trump loves to take credit for great jobs reports, when the economy is booming. He appears dead set on placing his appointees into influential positions within the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). In fact, this strategy implies a generous prediction that these new appointments would produce any “more transparent and more reliable” data.
Critics worry that the firing signals a troubling trend where leadership changes may compromise the objectivity and reliability of economic indicators. Hassett rejected the idea that Trump was just “shooting the messenger” after receiving bad news on upcoming job numbers.
As the administration grapples with these issues, the implications for economic policy and public confidence in statistical agencies remain uncertain.