Trump Blames Bad Jobs Report on Biden Appointee ‘Who Faked the Job Numbers’

AP Photo/Mary Altaffer

President Donald Trump accused a Biden administration official of deliberately manipulating key employment data in an explosive statement posted to his social media platform, Truth Social. The post came just hours after the release of a disappointing July jobs report that showed weaker-than-expected hiring and a downward revision to previous months.

Trump alleged that Dr. Erika McEntarfer, the Biden-appointed Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), “faked” employment numbers during the 2024 campaign to boost Vice President Kamala Harris’s electoral chances. Trump, who returned to the White House in January after defeating Harris in the November election, claimed he has now directed his team to fire McEntarfer and replace her with “someone much more competent and qualified.”

The jobs report released earlier in the day showed a net gain of just 73,000 jobs in July—well below economists’ expectations—and also revised prior months’ totals downward by a combined 258,000. The revisions, Trump suggested, prove that the data was systematically manipulated in the months leading up to the election.

“This is the same Bureau of Labor Statistics that overstated the Jobs Growth in March 2024 by approximately 818,000 and, then again, right before the 2024 Presidential Election, in August and September, by 112,000,” Trump wrote. “These were Records — No one can be that wrong?”

Trump wrote on Truth Social:

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 chances of Victory. This is the same Bureau of Labor Statistics that overstated the Jobs Growth in March 2024 by approximately 818,000 and, then again, right before the 2024 Presidential Election, in August and September, by 112,000. These were Records — No one can be that wrong? 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. 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. Similar things happened in the first part of the year, always to the negative. 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 – How did that work out? Jerome “Too Late” Powell should also be put “out to pasture.” Thank you for your attention to this matter!

In the same post, Trump also took aim at Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, accusing the central bank of playing “games” with interest rates to help Democrats in the 2024 race. “Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell should also be put ‘out to pasture,’” Trump said, suggesting the Fed’s decision to cut interest rates twice late last year was politically motivated.

The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics has not issued a public statement addressing Trump’s claims. McEntarfer, an experienced labor economist, was named BLS Commissioner in 2023 and previously held senior roles within the agency’s research divisions.

UPDATE: Trump furhter explained in another social media post that insisted that “today’s Jobs Numbers were RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.” Trump wrote:

In my opinion, today’s Jobs Numbers were RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad — Just like when they had three great days around the 2024 Presidential Election, and then, those numbers were “taken away” on November 15, 2024, right after the Election, when the Jobs Numbers were massively revised DOWNWARD, making a correction of over 818,000 Jobs — A TOTAL SCAM. Jerome “Too Late” Powell is no better! But, the good news is, our Country is doing GREAT!

Economists typically caution against drawing political conclusions from short-term data fluctuations, noting that monthly jobs reports are subject to regular revisions and seasonal adjustments. Nonetheless, Trump’s public call to oust a nonpartisan statistician over a disappointing report marks a striking departure from presidential norms.