WASHINGTON – In firing the head of the agency that produces monthly jobs figures, President Donald Trump alleged that the recent weaker-than-expected numbers were phony and that positive numbers reported before the 2024 election were manipulated to make him look bad.
It’s a familiar cadence Trump has adopted in reacting to jobs reports: He treats the figures as legitimate when they are favorable to him and fraudulent when they are less than stellar or seem to benefit his opponent.
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A look at some of Trump's observations on jobs reports over the past year:
“STOCK MARKETS ARE CRASHING, JOBS NUMBERS ARE TERRIBLE, WE ARE HEADING TO WORLD WAR lll, AND WE HAVE TWO OF THE MOST INCOMPETENT ‘LEADERS’ IN HISTORY. THIS IS NOT GOOD!!!” — Trump post on Truth Social
Suggesting President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were responsible, Trump was reacting to the news that U.S. employees had added 114,000 jobs in July — 35% fewer than expected — and that the unemployment rate was at its highest level in nearly three years.
“Today’s jobs report is a great embarrassment for our Nation. Kamala has lied for years about their pathetic job growth, which has never been real. Kamala killed 46,000 manufacturing jobs, while 773,000 Americans have lost employment in just the last year — all while their jobs have been taken by foreign-born workers. America is a Nation in Decline because Sleepy Joe, and Lyin’ Kamala, didn’t do their job. ‘TRUMP’ WILL FIX IT! MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN! GO VOTE!” — Trump post on Truth Social
Days ahead of the presidential election, Trump blasted news that U.S. employers had added just 12,000 jobs in October, a total that economists say had been held down by the effects of strikes and hurricanes that left many workers temporarily off payrolls.
“Nearly 250,000 people dropped out of the labor force. They dropped out because they couldn’t get a job. Can you imagine that? Can you imagine? These are the numbers, and they don’t want to talk about it, but that’s OK. These numbers are disqualifying.” — Trump campaign rally in Raleigh, North Carolina
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, around 220,000 people left the civilian U.S. workforce from September to October 2024 during Biden's presidency.
“GREAT JOB NUMBERS, FAR BETTER THAN EXPECTED. IT’S ALREADY WORKING. HANG TOUGH, WE CAN’T LOSE!!!" — Trump post on Truth Social
Trump quickly praised news that in March, U.S. employers had added a surprising 228,000 jobs, showing that the American labor market was in solid shape as he embarked on a risky trade war with the rest of the world. The hiring numbers were up from 117,000 in February and were nearly double the 130,000 that economists had expected.
“GREAT JOB NUMBERS, STOCK MARKET UP BIG! AT THE SAME TIME, BILLIONS POURING IN FROM TARIFFS!!!” — Trump post on Truth Social
Trump responded enthusiastically to the initial numbers on the May jobs report, which indicated that the economy added 139,000 jobs.
That estimate was later revised down to 125,000 jobs, prior to the most recent revision down to just 19,000.
“I was just informed that our Country’s ‘Jobs Numbers’ are being produced by a Biden Appointee, Dr. Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of Labor Statistics, who faked the Jobs Numbers before the Election to try and boost Kamala’s chances of Victory. ... I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY." — Trump post on Truth Social
Trump ousted McEntarfer following a report showed hiring slowed in July and was much weaker in May and June than previously reported, taking issue in subsequent days to the revisions of jobs figures that are a regular occurrence with the monthly reporting.
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Kinnard can be reached at http://x.com/MegKinnardAP