Particle.news
Download on the App Store
9 ARTICLES
·
last wk.

Trump’s BLS Nominee E.J. Antoni Draws Fire for Partisan Record and Reporting Changes

Senate HELP Committee examination will focus on Antoni’s statistical background and quarterly reporting proposal with advocates urging stronger agency independence

The US Department of Labor headquarters in Washington, DC on Monday, August 11. The $2 trillion market for securities linked to US inflation data could be the first area of Treasuries to crack if the Bureau of Labor Statistics is politicized, according to bond investors.
Protesters clash with riot police during a demonstration in the center of Athens on February 24, 2010. Greece ground to a halt on February 24 as unions staged a one-day general strike and thousands of demonstrators took to the streets to protest austerity measures designed to tame a public debt crisis. Schools, government offices and courthouses were all closed while there was also major disruption to public transport, banks, hospitals and state-owned companies.
Image
A shopper carries a bag at Eastern Market in Detroit, Michigan on Saturday, June 7.

Overview

  • E.J. Antoni, currently chief economist at the Heritage Foundation, was nominated to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics after President Trump dismissed Erika McEntarfer over steep revisions to May–July job figures.
  • Leading economists and former BLS commissioners have criticized Antoni’s limited academic tenure and agency experience, highlighting errors in his work and warning his partisan record could erode trust.
  • Antoni’s plan to suspend monthly jobs reports in favor of quarterly releases aims to reduce data revisions but risks upending economic forecasting models and shifting the agency’s publication cadence.
  • Friends of the BLS, chaired by ex-commissioners William Beach and Erica Groshen, has called for a thorough Senate review and at least $770 million in congressional funding to modernize survey methods.
  • The BLS remains under acting Commissioner William Wiatrowski as the Senate HELP Committee prepares hearings to probe modernization needs, funding shortfalls and safeguards for the agency’s nonpartisan mission.