Causes a lot of criticism
Trump consultant defends the dismissal of statistics chief
For critics of Trump, the head of the Office for Labor Market Statistics is another indication of development towards authoritarianism. His business advisor, on the other hand, holds as president.
The decision of US President Donald Trump to dismiss the head of the Office for Labor Market statistics causes a lot of criticism in the USA – but Trump’s business advisor Kevin Hassett defends the step. When asked whether the government had any evidence that the labor market numbers had been manipulated, Hassett told NBC News: “Well, the proof is that there were a number of revisions.”
These could seem too partisan. Hassett replied to the hook, whether there are also tangible evidence: “I think the revisions are tangible evidence.”
In view of the surprisingly weak labor market, Trump had announced on Friday that the head of the Office for Labor Market Statistics, Erika Mcentarfer, wanted to relieve. He accused her of manipulated labor market numbers for political purposes.
Previously, it became known that the US labor market showed significant signs of weakness at the beginning of summer. For the period of May and June, the Ministry of Labor revised the number of new positions by a total of 258,000.
Corrections of the numbers afterwards are common, but the scope this time is not. Economists also explain the disappointing labor market data with the effects of the US government’s aggressive customs policy.
By Trump’s ex-boss of the office: “Completely unfounded”
In the United States, there is violent criticism of the dismissal of Mcentarfer – for example from the former head of the Office for Labor Market Statistics, William Beach. He was appointed the post by Trump and described the discharge of his successor on Friday on X as completely unfounded. This creates a dangerous precedent and undermine the statistical task of the office.
In a conversation with the news portal “Politico”, he stated that hundreds of people worked on the numbers – and about 40 people completed them. These are professional people who would have done their job among Republicans like Democrats. The head of the office has no influence on the data and cannot see it before she was fully completed, he said. Beach therefore described any influence from her position as very unlikely.
The democratic senator Chris Murphy wrote on X that Trump’s approach was another step towards authoritarianism: “Truth is replaced by propaganda.” The Soviets would have done that too.
dpa
Source: Stern
