Trump orders firing of Biden-appointed Bureau of Labor Statistics chief after negative jobs data

John T. Bennett, CQ-Roll Call on Aug 1, 2025

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WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday he had ordered the firing of Erika McEntarfer, the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics who was appointed by his predecessor Joe Biden, hours after her office released data showing sluggish job growth over the past four months.

The bureau’s latest report put job growth for July at 73,000, well under expectations of around 100,000 new positions. BLS also revised downward by 258,000 previously published job numbers for April, May and June.

“We need accurate Jobs Numbers. I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY. She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform, while also alleging that McEntarfer’s office “faked” 2024 numbers to boost Kamala Harris in last year’s election.

“Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can’t be manipulated for political purposes. McEntarfer said there were only 73,000 Jobs added (a shock!) but, more importantly, that a major mistake was made by them, 258,000 Jobs downward, in the prior two months,” the president added. “Similar things happened in the first part of the year, always to the negative.”

Biden nominated McEntarfer as BLS commissioner in July 2023, and the Senate easily confirmed her the following January on an 86-8 vote.

Democrats were quick to pan Trump’s move Friday, with Senate Minority Leader Charles E. Schumer calling the action “classic Donald Trump.”

“What does a bad leader do when they get bad news? Shoot the messenger,” the New York Democrat said on the floor Friday afternoon.

House Budget ranking member Brendan F. Boyle, said in a statement that amid a worsening economy and jobs market, Trump “fired the person who reported the facts.”

“This kind of interference puts the credibility of government data at risk and shakes confidence in the economy,” the Pennsylvania Democrat added.

Ahead of his scheduled late-afternoon departure to his New Jersey golf club, Trump was back on social media to claim that the jobs data was “RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.”

‘Hottest country’

Friday’s firing comes after Trump has for weeks described the U.S. economy and country in general as “hot.”

Collectively, the July jobs data and the revised April-June numbers dramatically undercut the president’s economic health assessment, which he on Thursday tied directly to his trade and tariff policies.

“We have made a few (trade) deals today that are excellent deals for the country. We’re taking in literally trillions of dollars for the country,” Trump said, even though his top spokeswoman on Thursday put that figure at “more than $150 billion since President Trump took office, leading to the first June budget surplus in nearly a decade.”

Trump, a short time later on Thursday, contended that his trade and tariff policies were “making our country very rich and respected again.”

“One year ago, we were a dead country. Now we’re the hottest country in the world,” he asserted during a Roosevelt Room executive order-signing event. “We’re doing great.”

Recent polls have shown a drop not only in Trump’s overall job approval rating but also in support for his handling of economic and trade matters.

A July 25-28 Economist/YouGov survey put his approval rating on jobs and the economy at 40%, with 51% of Americans disapproving. And a July 26-28 Reuters-Ipsos poll showed 38% approving of his economic stewardship, while 55% disapproved.

Trump on Friday sought to pass the blame to McEntarfer and Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who opted this week to leave interest rates static despite pressure from the president to lower them.

“The Economy is BOOMING under ‘TRUMP’ despite a Fed that also plays games, this time with Interest Rates, where they lowered them twice, and substantially, just before the Presidential Election, I assume in the hopes of getting ‘Kamala’ elected,” Trump wrote in his social media post announcing McEntarfer’s ouster. “How did that work out? Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell should also be put ‘out to pasture.’”