President Donald Trump said he has directed officials to dismiss Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, a 2023 Biden nominee confirmed by the Senate last year. Trump alleged, without providing evidence, that McEntarfer “faked” employment data to aid Democratic candidates and declared that the country “needs accurate jobs numbers.” The order came hours after the BLS reported that U.S. payrolls grew by only 73,000 positions in July and that May and June gains were revised lower by a combined 258,000. The unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2%. Trump also cited a February benchmark revision that reduced estimated 2024 job creation by 818,000, arguing those earlier figures had been overstated. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer later wrote that McEntarfer was no longer leading the agency and that Deputy Commissioner William Wiatrowski would serve as acting chief, though the administration has not formally confirmed her removal. Economists said there is no evidence of manipulation and warned the move could undermine confidence in U.S. economic statistics. Trump separately called for Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to resign, saying the central bank chief should be "put out to pasture."