On Friday morning, August 1, 2025, President Donald Trump made a dramatic move that shook Washington and Wall Street. Just hours after the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the July jobs report showing far weaker-than-expected hiring, Trump announced he was firing Erika McEntarfer, the agency’s commissioner.
The report showed the U.S. economy added only 73,000 jobs in July, far below forecasts of over 110,000. Even more shocking were major downward revisions to previous months: May and June combined lost 258,000 jobs compared to earlier estimates. The unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 4.2%, raising fears of a slowdown.
Trump quickly blamed McEntarfer, calling the numbers “rigged” and accusing her of pushing “fake stats” without offering any evidence. “These are Biden’s people manipulating the data,” Trump wrote on Truth Social, adding that he wanted someone “qualified and honest” running the agency.
Within hours, William Wiatrowski, the BLS deputy commissioner, was named acting head. Wiatrowski briefly held the same role during Trump’s first term and will lead the agency until a permanent replacement is appointed.
The firing drew immediate backlash from economists and lawmakers. Critics warned that removing a nonpartisan statistician for publishing data the White House doesn’t like could undermine public trust in the government’s economic reports. “This is what happens in authoritarian regimes,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. “We rely on independent data to guide policy and markets. This is dangerous.”
Markets reacted nervously to the combination of weak job numbers and political drama. Stocks slipped, and the dollar fell as investors weighed the potential impact on the economy and the Federal Reserve’s next moves.
The BLS, which has operated as an independent agency for more than a century, said in a statement that the report was compiled according to standard methods and free from political influence. Analysts stressed that large revisions are not unusual, especially during periods of economic uncertainty.
For now, the firing adds another layer of tension to an already fragile economy facing trade battles, new tariffs, and slowing growth. Whether the move restores confidence or shakes it further will depend on the next reports — and on how the White House handles the storm it just created.