Rule Change Would Let Trump Fire Federal Statisticians

The Guardian reports:

A proposed rule change making it easier to fire civil servants deemed to be “intentionally subverting presidential directives” could pave the way for the White House to fire statisticians employed to produce objective data on the economy but whose figures prove politically inconvenient, experts warn.

Statistics released by agencies such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) are used by the Federal Reserve Bank to set inflation policy and interest rates. They also form the basis on which businesses and investors take decisions.

The US’s global reputation as a stable economic power and a reliable partner goes hand-in-hand with its long history of producing accurate data, dating back to the establishment of the BLS in 1884. Interfere with the latter and you risk sacrificing the former, experts warn.

Read the full article.

Cooking the books? Fears Trump could target statisticians if data disappoints

Proposed rule change could pave way for president to fire economists whose figures prove politically inconvenient

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025…

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— Lauren Ashley Davis (@laurenmeidasa.bsky.social) May 18, 2025 at 1:04 PM