Trump fires BLS chief for bad news

The Barbarian said:

Trump fires commissioner of labor statistics after weaker-than-expected jobs figures slam markets​

President Donald Trump on Friday fired the Bureau of Labor Statistics commissioner, hours after the agency reported that job growth in the U.S. had slowed to a near-halt.

In a Truth Social post that also directed even more fire at Fed Chair Jerome Powell, Trump accused BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer of being a political appointee who was manipulating jobs data.

“I was just informed that our Country’s “Jobs Numbers” are being produced by a Biden Appointee, Dr. Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of Labor Statistics, who faked the Jobs Numbers before the Election to try and boost Kamala’s [Harris’] chances of Victory,” Trump wrote.

“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,” he added.

CNBC has reached out to the BLS for comment. NBC News confirmed that McEntarfer has been fired. The BLS operated under the Department of Labor, whose commissioner, Lori Chavez-DeRemer, is a Trump appointee.

The stunning demand came the same day that the BLS reported a gain of just 73,000 nonfarm jobs in July, below market expectations. In addition, the bureau revised the two previous months down sharply, cutting a combined 258,000 from the prior counts, putting the three-month growth rate at a paltry 35,000. It was the biggest two-month downward revision since April 2020, the early days of the Covid crisis.

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www.cnbc.com

Long time ago, a guy in a corner office who was like a mentor to me, offered some great advice.

"Never punish anyone who brings you bad news."

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The Barbarian said:

That's the point.

President Joe Biden nominated McEntarfer in July 2023 and was confirmed by the Senate in an 86-to-8 vote (with six members not voting) in January 2024. She received overwhelming bipartisan support in the vote.

U.S. Senate: U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 118th Congress - 2nd Session

www.senate.gov

Vice President JD Vance was among the Republicans who voted to confirm her.

Trump fires labor statistics boss hours after the release of weak jobs report

Without evidence, Trump called the data "rigged" and implied that BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer manipulated the numbers "for political purposes."

www.nbcnews.com

Does anyone really doubt that she will be replaced by a Trump loyalist who will make sure there's no more bad news?

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The Barbarian said:

Someeone lied to you about McEntarfer:

McEntarfer has a strong background on economics​

McEntarfer, whose research focuses on job loss, retirement, worker mobility, and wage rigidity, had previously worked at the Census Bureau’s Center for Economic Studies, the Treasury Department’s Office of Tax Policy and the White House Council of Economic Advisers in a nonpolitical role.

She has a bachelor’s degree in Social Science from Bard College and a doctoral degree in economics from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.

William Beach, who was appointed BLS commissioner in 2019 by Trump and served until 2023 during President Joe Biden’s administration, called McEntarfer’s firing “groundless” and said in an X post that it “sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the statistical mission of the Bureau.”

Former Labor Department chief economist Sarah J. Glynn, who received regular briefings from McEntarfer about BLS findings, said McEntarfer was generous with her time explaining what conclusions could or couldn’t be reached from the data.

If the data didn’t support something an administration official was saying, McEntarfer would say so, Glynn said. She also never weighed in on how the administration should present or interpret the data, Glynn said — she would simply answer questions about the data.

“She had a sterling reputation as someone who is concerned about the accuracy of the data and not someone who puts a political spin on her work,” Glynn said.

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apnews.com

Let's all be real about this; she got fired for telling the truth that Trump found objectionable.

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ozso said:

No one lied to me about the official reason why McEntarfer was discharged. See there's the official reason and then there's the speculative reason. Now there's virtually not a single person discharged by Trump that hasn't been met with complaints, accusations, and implications. And there's virtually not a single person hired by Trump that hasn't been met with complaints, accusations, and implications.

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FenderTL5 said:

There's reason for that. Donnie has demonstrated time and again with both hirings and firings that he cares little about qualification, abilities, integrity etc, his only concern is absolute loyalty and agreement to his every whim. This is yet another example.

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ozso said:

That sounds extremely bised..

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FenderTL5 said:

There's reason for that. Trump doesn't hide that he values loyalty. He said things like “We love loyalty in life, don’t you think? Loyalty?”
Prior to that, when speaking of then-FBI Director James Comey, “I need loyalty; I expect loyalty.”
That wasn't isolated either; in his book, Donnie wrote, “I value loyalty above everything else—more than brains, more than drive and more than energy.” more examples
Yes, it was biased toward reality.

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