President Donald Trump announced that his administration will appoint a new commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) over the next three to four days, following the firing of the previous one. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett defended Trump’s decision to fire BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, claiming the president “wants his own people there.” The weaker-than-expected jobs report last week showed the US economy adding just 73,000 jobs in July, and the monthly totals for May and June were revised down by a combined 258,000 jobs.
Hassett did not provide evidence that the report was incorrect, but said that the revisions are hard evidence that the jobs data was rigged. He called for a fresh set of eyes over the BLS and said that if he ran the BLS and had the biggest downward revision in 50 years, he would have a detailed report explaining why it happened. Former BLS Commissioner William Beach called the firing “groundless,” saying it undermines credibility in the bureau and raises questions about the perception of future reports.
Trade negotiations continue as new tariffs take effect, with deals with US trading partners being “more or less locked in” as new tariffs go into effect Thursday. The Trump administration has promised “90 deals in 90 days” but fell well short of that, with Hassett claiming frameworks with about eight major trading partners.
