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President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) is signaling a major shift in how the government reports on the nation’s job market, proposing a suspension of the agency’s closely watched monthly jobs report until what he calls “fundamental flaws” in the data are addressed.
E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation, said in a Tuesday morning appearance on Fox Business that the report’s methodology, modeling and statistical assumptions are unreliable and frequently overstated.
“How on earth are businesses supposed to plan – or how is the Fed supposed to conduct monetary policy – when they don’t know how many jobs are being added or lost in our economy? It’s a serious problem that needs to be fixed immediately,” Antoni said.
Trump announced Antoni’s nomination on Truth Social, praising him as someone who will ensure economic numbers are “HONEST and ACCURATE.” The appointment comes just 10 days after Trump fired BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, hours after the agency released a report showing a weaker-than-expected 73,000 jobs added in July and a large downward revision of 258,000 jobs from May and June.
In a post, Trump accused McEntarfer—without offering evidence—of rigging the numbers to harm his administration.
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
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