President Trump’s newly nominated pick to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), conservative economist E.J. Antoni, has sent shockwaves through Washington and on Wall Street by suggesting the agency should suspend its closely watched monthly jobs report. The proposal, which Antoni floated in a recent interview, has ignited a fierce debate over the integrity of U.S. economic data and the potential for a political takeover of a traditionally non-partisan agency.
The bombshell idea comes just days after President Trump abruptly fired the previous BLS commissioner, Erika McEntarfer, hours after the agency released a jobs report showing weaker-than-expected growth and a significant downward revision of past numbers. Trump, without evidence, accused McEntarfer of having “rigged” the numbers for political reasons.
Antoni, a chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation and a longtime critic of the BLS, has argued that the monthly jobs report is “unreliable” and its methodology “fundamentally flawed.” In an interview with Fox News Digital, he stated, “Until it is corrected, the BLS should suspend issuing the monthly job reports but keep publishing the more accurate, though less timely, quarterly data.” He pointed to a declining survey response rate and “error-filled” statistical assumptions as reasons for his concerns.
The suggestion has been met with immediate and widespread condemnation from economists across the political spectrum. Critics warn that sidelining the monthly jobs report—a key indicator used by everyone from policymakers at the Federal Reserve to investors and business leaders—would be like “gouging out our eyes.” The move, they say, would not only create economic uncertainty but also fuel a perception that the administration is politicizing a vital source of public information.
The White House, however, has sought to distance itself from the more extreme proposal. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked if the report would continue to be published, said, “I believe that is the plan and that’s the hope.” However, that assurance has done little to quell the rising alarm.
Antoni’s nomination itself is a significant departure from past practices. Traditionally, the BLS commissioner has been a mild-mannered, non-partisan technocrat. Antoni, by contrast, has been an outspoken and partisan commentator, whose past remarks have been described by some as “rife with basic mistakes.”
The controversy underscores a broader battle over the independence of America’s statistical agencies. With the administration proposing budget cuts and a potential reorganization of the BLS, many fear that the foundation of reliable, non-political economic data is at risk. For now, the fate of the monthly jobs report rests in the hands of the Senate, which must confirm Antoni before he can take the helm of the embattled agency.