Currently, the White House Trump has a simple strategy to deal with what he considers bad news: attacking the Messenger. They pressed on television networks to cancel comedy programs, and filed lawsuits against the main media, and of course they shot the head of the Bls Statistics Office to issue job data they did not like.

Trump’s sudden decision to remove BLS, ECENTERFAR was not surprising, but the ridiculous logic – the additional damage that he can still do – deserves a closer look.

The rear story straight forward: On August 1, BLS released the Jubly Jobs report, which found weaker of job creation and a slight increase in the unemployment rate. The report also reviewed the job creation numbers from the previous two months. This did not sit well with Trump, who Claim The numbers were “forged to make the Republicans, and I look bad.”

There is no evidence that supports the allegation of forgery, which will be effective impossible due to the way the data is collected, so that this is not logical. If the intention is to make Trump look bad, then job data gets the most interest in the day it is launched, and not when reviewing it after a period or two. Why does someone make Trump look bad, export exaggerated job numbers on the day when the data receives a lot of attention and then revised it down when no one searches?

Trump did not help his case when he chose EJ Antoni, the chief economist of the Heritage Foundation, as a BLS candidate, after he pledged to appoint a new BLS chair “more efficient and qualified”. In fact, Anthony does not seem to have the minimum knowledge of BLS methods or economic statistics. His nomination was Widespread Through the political spectrum.

It should be noted that just a few weeks ago, the White House was defending the BLS of criticism. In July, a spokesman for the administration He said The Washington Post, “unimportant attempts to undermine confidence in BLS data does not change the fact that President Trump’s economic agenda in support of growth has created more than half a million jobs since he took office.” In short, everything is fine as long as the numbers tell the story that the White House wants to hear.

There is nothing strange about job reviews

Trump’s anger reviews are a completely natural part of the process. Monthly job data comes from the salary statements for employers. Although the employers are supposed to re -survey in the month in which it is sent, many of them are not returned until the next month, or even two months after two months. With more surveys, BLS reviews its data. If many employers are slow to return their surveys, or if the group that restores surveys is late, then the reviews may be large for the first job growth number.

In addition, once a year BLS issues the so -called “standard” reviews that include unemployment insurance data to obtain a more complete image of employment. The initial standard review arrived earlier this month, and I found the economy He added 911,000 jobs less than previously believed between March 2024 and March 2025.

This is the second year in a row in which BLS issued a great review. In August 2024, he decided that 818,000 jobs were created. Trump accused the Biden administration of “implicitly tackling job statistics”, although it is unclear how report (before the elections) that job growth was less impressive than it seemed to help Biden.

None of this is hidden from opinion or manipulation by actors who seek to harm President Trump. He is not the first president to make such allegations; Din Baker recently noticed, Richard Nixon was Similar conspiracy theories About BLS.

Real fears, not those

While Trump is unable to identify actual problems in how BLS works, this does not mean that there are no concerns. But they are also not a secret – in fact, external economists and people inside the agency have long identified them. We know, for example, that the response rates to home surveys have decreased. In the case of the current population survey, which is used to calculate the unemployment rate, it has passed from 90 percent to 70 percent. The agency has found it difficult to employ companies to participate in a survey of salary statements, and to obtain timely responses from those who participate is a challenge, It decreased from 74 percent to 57 percent In the first month.

These problems cannot be overcome, but like many government agencies, BLS faced years of narrow budgets and employee employees. A letter For the leaders of Congress signed by dozens of economists, all this and more, and they specifically called for adequate financing with the eye towards updating the current systems.

The Trump administration, though, has other ideas. The president recently I suggest a reduction of 8 percent The agency’s budget. Early of his term, they solved unpaid consulting groups that make notes on a set of technical issues. Bls has hanging It collects some of the data you use to collect inflation data, as well as some wholesale pricing data, which is part of the product price index. If the administration wants to trust people in the economic data of the government, it seems that it takes steps moving in the opposite direction.

What comes after that? Earlier this month, the Ministry of Labor Inspector Office Declare A review of the BLS processing for jobs and inflation data will be conducted. In regular management, this may not be a cause of anxiety. But given the repeated attacks on the agency from a president gives priority to loyalty to accuracy, there are reasons for anxiety.

This appeared for the first time on Dean Baker Overpower Blog.