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Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Who is EJ Antoni? Trump names Conservative economist to head Bureau of Labor Statistics
President Donald Trump named EJ Antoni, chief economist of the conservative Heritage Foundation, to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics after firing the former head of the agency earlier this month. Trump appointed Antoni, who has been vocal about his concerns with BLS jobs data and revisions, in a Truth Social post Monday. Trump appointed Antoni, who has been vocal about his concerns with BLS jobs data and revisions, in a Truth Social post Monday. The position is subject to Senate confirmation. 'Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released are HONEST and ACCURATE,' Trump wrote. Antoni didn't immediately respond to a request for comment after the announcement. Antoni would succeed Erika McEntarfer, whom Trump abruptly fired Aug. 1 after a BLS report showed weak job growth in July and substantial downward revisions to the prior two months. He accused her, without evidence, of manipulating the numbers for political purposes, while noting that she was appointed by former President Joe Biden. Trump's firing of McEntarfer shocked economists across the political spectrum, who immediately came to her defense and BLS as an institution. The agency's work, in addition to that of other US statistical offices, has a 'gold standard' reputation globally for being free of political influence — a status which many now fear is at risk. BLS routinely revises its data in an effort to make it more accurate in the long run. But the latest revisions, which trimmed 258,000 jobs from May and June, were particularly eye-catching — marking the largest downward adjustment since the pandemic. Steve Bannon, a senior adviser to Trump in his first term and an influential voice in conservative circles, had pushed Antoni for the role, calling him 'the perfect guy at the perfect time to run the BLS.' Antoni came on Bannon's podcast shortly after the latest jobs report was released, where he was asked if there was a 'MAGA Republican' in charge of BLS. Antoni responded, 'No, unfortunately.' Antoni added that the absence of a Trump pick running the agency is 'part of the reason why we continue to have all of these different data problems.' He contributed to the Project 2025 policy rubric, which, in part, called for maximizing hiring of political appointees at the Labor Department, which oversees BLS. Initial Reaction 'So far, what worries me is that the nominee and his work are not well known in the business, academic or public service communities,' said Erica Groshen, who served as BLS commissioner during the Obama administration and co-chairs an advocacy group for the agency. A candidate needs to be able to effectively interact with both Congress and senior Labor Department staff as well as show a record of understanding that trust and data integrity are 'mission-critical' for BLS, among other qualifications, to garner bipartisan support, she said. William Beach, whom Trump appointed to the role in his first term and co-chairs the Friends of BLS group with Groshen, agreed the candidate would need those characteristics, as well as others like deep expertise in economic statistics, extensive engagement with the federal statistical agencies and visibility in the statistical community. Beach said Antoni possesses 'many' of those, adding he doesn't know if anyone has them all. Antoni, who has a Ph.D. in economics, is a senior fellow at Unleash Prosperity, a group that counts Steve Forbes, Arthur Laffer and Stephen Moore among its leaders and is one of the entities regularly bringing policy ideas to Trump. 'EJ will be outstanding,' Moore, also an economist at the Heritage Foundation, said in a text to Bloomberg News. 'Great economist and statistician.' Jason Furman, who chaired President Barack Obama's Council of Economic Advisers, disapproved of Trump's pick. Antoni is 'completely unqualified' to lead BLS, Furman said in a post on X. 'He is an extreme partisan and does not have any relevant expertise.' McEntarfer Firing Commissioners serve four-year terms, often spanning both Republican and Democratic administrations. Beach, who preceded McEntarfer, criticized her firing. He said it is 'damaging' and 'undermines credibility in BLS.' William Wiatrowski, who was McEntarfer's deputy, has served as acting commissioner in the interim. Those appointed to the commissioner role typically have years of experience as economists or statisticians within the agency, government or related institutions. Effective January 2025, the pay for the role of BLS commissioner was $195,200. The latest employment report showed job growth averaged just 35,000 in the past three months, fundamentally shifting perceptions of the labor market from solid to near-stalling. The new data also called into question the Fed's decision to keep interest rates steady at their meeting just a few days prior, following repeated pressure from Trump to lower borrowing costs. Trump said the numbers were 'RIGGED' to make him and Republicans look bad. BLS said the revisions were largely a result of seasonal adjustment and incorporating more data. BLS will release July inflation figures Tuesday. 'Top to Bottom' Review Antoni has called for a 'top to bottom' review of all the agency's data collection, data processing, analytics and dissemination. He also said the BLS should post even more information on its website to increase transparency. McEntarfer was confirmed as commissioner in early 2024 with bipartisan support. She arrived at the agency with over 20 years of experience in the federal government, including roles at the Census Bureau and Treasury Department. She previously served as a senior economist at the White House Council of Economic Advisers under Biden. BLS is responsible for publishing some of the foremost statistics on US employment and inflation, which are used to inform an array of business and policy decisions from setting wages to adjusting Social Security benefits. It's housed within the Labor Department but largely functions as an independent institution. Trump's 2026 budget proposal suggested moving BLS under the Commerce Department, where other economic statistical agencies like the Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic Analysis reside. The proposal would also reduce BLS's budget and staffing, adding to funding challenges that predate Trump but have grown more acute in his second term.
News18
3 hours ago
- News18
DeSantis picks state Sen Jay Collins to be Floridas lieutenant governor
Tallahassee (US), Aug 12 (AP) Florida Gov Ron DeSantis has tapped Republican state Sen. Jay Collins to be his next lieutenant governor. It's a closely watched appointment by the two-term governor, who can't run for reelection in 2026 and has been working to cement his legacy as his time leading the state winds down. If Collins, an Army combat veteran and nonprofit executive, decides to launch a bid to succeed DeSantis, the move could tee up another proxy fight between the popular GOP governor and President Donald Trump, who has already endorsed Republican Congressman Byron Donalds for the job. The seat has been vacant since February, when then-lieutenant governor Jeanette Nuñez was appointed to lead one of the state's public universities. In Florida, the lieutenant governor position is largely ceremonial with few official responsibilities, apart from taking over if the governor cannot serve. Collins was first elected to Florida's Republican-dominated state Senate in 2022 and has been seen as one of DeSantis' key allies in the Legislature. In recent months, GOP legislators loyal to the president have increasingly sparred with the governor, who challenged Trump for the 2024 Republican presidential nomination. Born in Montana, Collins has talked openly about personal challenges he has overcome, including experiencing homelessness while in high school. He went on to join the Army Special Forces and ultimately lost a leg, but continued to serve five more years as a Green Beret post-amputation, according to a campaign biography. The appointment is seen as a way for DeSantis to elevate a potential successor in 2026, though the governor has repeatedly talked up his wife, Casey DeSantis, for the job, while taking shots at Trump's pick. (AP) RD RD RD view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Indian Express
4 hours ago
- Indian Express
US consumer prices increase moderately in July; data quality concerns rising
US consumer prices increased moderately in July, though rising costs for goods because of import tariffs led to a measure of underlying inflation posting its largest gain in six months. The consumer price index rose 0.2% last month after gaining 0.3% in June, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Tuesday. In the 12 months through July, the CPI advanced 2.7% after rising 2.7% in June. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the CPI rising 0.2% and increasing 2.8% year-on-year. The Federal Reserve tracks different inflation measures for its 2% target. Prior to the CPI data, financial markets expected the US central bank would resume cutting interest rates in September after July's weak employment report and sharp downward revisions to the nonfarm payrolls counts for May and June. The Fed left its benchmark overnight interest rate in the 4.25%-4.50% range last month for the fifth straight time since December. The CPI report was published amid mounting concerns over the quality of inflation and employment reports following cuts in budget and staffing that have led to the suspension of data collection for portions of the CPI basket in some areas across the country. Those worries were amplified by President Donald Trump firing Erika McEntarfer, the head of the BLS, early this month after stall-speed job growth in July, reinforced by sharp downward revisions to the May and June nonfarm payrolls counts. The suspension of data collection followed years of what economists described as the underfunding of the BLS under both Republican and Democratic administrations. The situation has been exacerbated by the Trump White House's unprecedented campaign to reshape the government through deep spending cuts and mass layoffs of public workers. Citing the need to 'align survey workload with resource levels,' the BLS suspended CPI data collection completely in one city in Nebraska, Utah and New York. It has also suspended collection on 15% of the sample in the other 72 areas, on average. This affected both the commodity and services pricing survey as well as the housing survey, which the BLS said resulted in the number of collected prices and the number of collected rents used to calculate the CPI temporarily reduced. That has led to the BLS using imputations to fill in the missing information. The share of different cell imputation in the CPI data jumped to 35% in June from 30% in May. Different cell imputation, which the BLS uses when all prices are unavailable in the home cell, maintains the item category but expands geography. The home cell method, considered by economists as higher quality, uses the average price of the same item in the same location as the missing product's price. The use of different cell imputation has grown from a share of only 8% in June 2024. Economists said while these measures adopted by the BLS will not introduce bias in the CPI data, the volatility was a cause for concern.
