Trump stokes conspiracies about jobs data, as White House defends firing BLS chief

President Donald Trump walks towards reporters from Marine One at at the Lehigh Valley International Airport on August 03, 2025 in Allentown, Pennsylvania.Anna Moneymaker | Getty ImagesPresident Donald Trump and one of his top economic advisors on Monday stoked baseless conspiracies federal jobs data, suggesting without evidence that Friday's weaker-than-expected employment report had been "rigged" by federal workers bent on sabotaging the president."All over the U.S. government, there have been people who have been resisting Trump everywhere they can," National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said Monday on CNBC.Trump, meanwhile, claimed on social media that the report, which painted a dour picture of the economy, was "RIGGED" and the previous months' revisions had been "CONCOCTED in order to make a great Republican Success look less stellar!!!"The only way to tect the integrity of economic data, said Hassett, is to replace the economists and statisticians who lead the agencies that collect data."To make sure that the data are as transparent and as reliable as possible, we're going to get highly qualified people in there that have a fresh start and a fresh set of eyes on the blem," said Hassett.Trump abruptly fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer on Friday.Monday's s from Trump and Hassett were the effort by the White House to criticize the labor statistic bureau's work in order to retroactively justify McEntarfer's firing.But they also went a step further, planting the idea that any government economic data which does not fit neatly into Trump's political narrative must, by definition, be false and manipulated by partisan federal employees.Read more CNBC coverageTrump undermines trust in jobs data, as White House defends firing BLS chiefEU will delay planned U.S. tariffs for six months to allow for trade talksWhite House struggles to justify firing of BLS chief over weak jobs numbeen

Wyden: Trump 'soft, weak and afraid' for firing BLS chief over jobs reportTrump fires commissioner of labor statistics after weaker-than-expected jobs figures slam Trump says he moved two nu submarines after Russia's Medvedev warns U.S.Jeffrey Epstein accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell moved from Florida prison to Texas lockupAnother late-night Trump trade twist — just hours before the world hit goTrump's tariffs kick in, reversing decades of expanding global tradeTrump extends Mexico's 25% tariffs for 90 days as talks continueWoman pleads guilty in $30M scam that sold access to Trump fundraiser, fake U.S. residencyWhen the monthly jobs report from BLS is good news for the White House, Trump is quick to claim credit for the growth and point to the BLS-supplied figures as of that his economic plans are working."GREAT JOB NUMBERS, FAR BETTER THAN EXPECTED

HANG TOUGH, WE CAN'T LOSE!!!" Trump wrote on social media this spring after job growth in March came in better than expected.Fast forward a few months, and Trump and his top aides now contend that the BLS data cannot be trusted, and the downward revisions to the last two months' jobs reports were phony.It's the same argument Trump used to try to undermine Americans' trust in the voting cess after he lost the 2020 presidential election.In his Monday post, Trump drew a straight line between the jobs report and the voting cess."Last weeks Job's Report was RIGGED, just the numbers prior to the Presidential Election were Rigged," Trump wrote.There is no evidence, however, that the jobs report data was manipulated, and revisions in the data are common

The reports typically become more accurate in the months after an initial report is filed, as more data flows in from that report their hiring and firing numbers.."The commissioner doesn't do anything to collect the numbers," former BLS chief William Beach, who was appointed by Trump, said Sunday on CNN as he slammed the decision to fire McEntarfer."The commissioner doesn't see the numbers for — until Wednesday before they're published," he said.Don’t miss these insights from CNBC Bank of America says these five stocks have more room to run ahead of earningsThese overbought stocks could take a dip after the market's record gainsGoldman Sachs is getting worried the economyWhat the prediction are saying the big Wall Street events ahead