Trump's sudden dismissal of an under-the-radar statistician stirs up speculations about manipulated government statistics
In a move that has sparked controversy and raised alarms, President Donald Trump fired Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), on August 2, 2025. The dismissal came immediately after the BLS released a July jobs report that showed only 73,000 new jobs added—much lower than economists' expectations—and a significant downward revision (258,000 fewer jobs) to the May and June reports.
McEntarfer, a career economist and BLS leader, was appointed by President Joe Biden in 2023 and confirmed by the Senate with bipartisan support. She had spent decades as a government statistician, working at the Census Bureau and across the bureaucracy.
Trump publicly criticized the data as inaccurate and "rigged," accusing McEntarfer of manipulating numbers for political purposes to benefit the Biden administration and specifically to boost Kamala Harris’s chances in the 2024 election. He made these accusations without presenting any evidence.
The firing sparked significant debate about the politicization of government economic reporting. Economists, former officials, and data experts expressed concern about the implications for trust in the BLS and the credibility of official economic statistics. The White House defended the dismissal, emphasizing the need for accurate data but also acknowledging the controversy around the move.
McEntarfer responded on social media thanking the agency and its staff, while the administration named Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski as acting commissioner after her removal.
Trump's decision to oust McEntarfer was influenced by her being a Biden appointee. The confirmation process for the new commissioner will take place in the Senate, where even some Republicans have questioned Trump's decision to dismiss McEntarfer. The White House official stated that the new commissioner is expected to modernize the bureau's methods.
However, William Beach, the previous head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, selected by Trump, stated that whoever replaces McEntarfer would struggle to gain credibility. He argued that the firing "hurts the statistical system" and "undermines credibility in BLS."
Trump has not yet decided on a replacement for Erika McEntarfer as commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. His top advisers, including Susie Wiles, Kevin Hassett, Scott Bessent, Howard Lutnick, and Lori Chavez-DeRemer, will play a major role in deciding the next commissioner.
The revisions in the jobs report are a standard part of the monthly jobs report, aimed at making the report more accurate. Trump's decision to dismiss McEntarfer, an unprecedented move, has drawn immediate condemnation from economists of all stripes. Sen. Cynthia Lummis expressed concern that if Trump is firing the statistician because he doesn't like the numbers, even though they are accurate, it would be a problem.
The controversy surrounding President Donald Trump's dismissal of Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, has sparked discussions in the realm of politics and general news. Critics argue that this move could potentially politicize government economic reporting, particularly in the areas of education-and-self-development and crime-and-justice, as accurate data is crucial for informed decision-making and public understanding. Meanwhile, former BLS head William Beach contends that the firing undermines the credibility of the BLS and its statistical system.
