Trump nominates conservative economist to head agency that compiles
jobs, inflation data
[August 12, 2025] By
CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Monday that he has
nominated E.J. Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage
Foundation, to head the agency that compiles and publishes the nation's
employment and inflation figures.
“Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released
are HONEST and ACCURATE,” Trump said on social media late Monday.
Antoni, if approved by the Senate, would replace Erika McEntarfer, who
was appointed commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics by former
President Joe Biden. Trump fired McEntarfer Aug. 1 after the July jobs
report showed hiring slowed sharply this spring, with job gains in May
and June revised much lower than initially estimated.
Trump accused McEntarfer, without evidence, of rigging the jobs data for
political reasons.
The announcement comes one day before the BLS is scheduled to release
the latest inflation data, for July. It is forecast to show that
consumer prices rose for the third straight month as tariffs are pushing
up the cost of many imported goods.
Antoni has criticized the bureau's' collection and publication of the
jobs data for years, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic, after
which the agency has frequently revised its initial jobs estimates
lower. Many conservatives have argued that this potentially benefited
Biden by producing a large initial monthly job gain, only to have it
reduced in subsequent months.
However, revisions — including downward revisions — are not unusual and
occurred during the Trump administration as well. Overall hiring jumped
after the pandemic and the unemployment rate stayed low even after the
revisions.
Antoni called for McEntarfer to be fired after the jobs report was
released Aug. 1. Last Monday he wrote on X, “There are better ways to
collect, process, and disseminate data — that is the task for the next
BLS commissioner, and only consistent delivery of accurate data in a
timely manner will rebuild the trust that has been lost over the last
several years.”
[to top of second column] |
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters in the James Brady
Press Briefing Room at the White House, Monday, Aug. 11, 2025, in
Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
The BLS commissioner is the only political appointee at the agency,
which is otherwise staffed by career civil servants. Most previous
commissioners have been mild-mannered technocrats.
Antoni, however, has been an unabashed partisan in his economic analyses
posted on the Heritage website. For example, two months ago, in an
analysis of the May jobs report, he wrote, “A deep dive into the report
shows any weakness started long before the Trump administration, which
is making undeniable progress reprivatizing the economy.”
Antoni's nomination quickly attracted an unusual level of criticism.
Jason Furman, a top economist in the Obama administration, wrote on X:
“I don’t think I have ever publicly criticized any Presidential nominee
before. But E.J. Antoni is completely unqualified to be BLS
Commissioner. He is an extreme partisan and does not have any relevant
expertise.”
Kyle Pomeleau, a tax expert for the right-leaning Tax Foundation and the
conservative American Enterprise Institute, wrote on X: “There are a lot
of competent conservative economists that could do this job. E.J. is not
one of them."
___
Associated Press writer Josh Boak contributed to this report.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved
 |
