Two days after being fired by President Donald Trump, former Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Erika McEntarfer, has reacted to her sudden ouster, saying in a Bluesky post, “It has been the honor of my life to serve as Commissioner of BLS alongside the many dedicated civil servants tasked with measuring a vast and dynamic economy.”
While McEntarfer — appointed by President Biden and confirmed by the Senate in a bipartisan 86-8 vote in January 2024 — did not directly address Trump’s allegations, she thanked her colleagues for their service.
Trump had fired McEntarfer following the release of a weaker-than-expected July jobs report.
On Truth Social, Trump claimed McEntarfer had “faked the Jobs Numbers” to support former Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign, stating, “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,” the US President wrote.
Bipartisan Support and a Career in Data
Reports suggest McEntarfer is a respected labor economist with a PhD from Virginia Tech and a career spanning the Census Bureau, Treasury Department, and Council of Economic Advisers. Her confirmation had even garnered support from then-Senators JD Vance and Marco Rubio, now vice president and secretary of state.
Backlash from Economists and Former Officials
Trump’s move sparked criticism across the economic and political spectrum. William Beach, a Trump-appointed former BLS commissioner, called the firing “totally groundless,” warning it “sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the statistical mission of the Bureau.”
Sarah J Glynn, former chief economist at the Labor Department, told the Associated Press, “She had a sterling reputation… not someone who puts a political spin on her work.”
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