Dr. E.J. Antoni, nominee for the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics stands next to Donald Trump in the Oval Office.
Courtesy: Donald J. Trump via Truth Social
President Donald Trump said Monday that he will nominate the economist E. J. Antoni as commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Antoni would replace Erika McEntarfer, who Trump fired as BLS commissioner on Aug. 1, after accusing her of manipulating jobs report data.
McEntarfer was terminated hours after her agency reported reported slower than expected nonfarm job payroll growth in July, and after sharply revising downward previously reported June and May job gains.
Antoni is the chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation and has been a longtime critic of the BLS.
“I am pleased to announce that I am nominating Highly Respected Economist, Dr. E.J. Antoni, as the next Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Monday evening.
“Our Economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the Numbers released are HONEST and ACCURATE,” Trump wrote. “I know E.J. Antoni will do an incredible job in this new role. Congratulations E.J.!”
The Senate would have to confirm Antoni’s nomination for him to take over BLS, which is a division of the Labor Department.
Antoni was a contributor to Project 2025, the controversial conservative policy blueprint designed to help Trump and his officials achieve a raft of goals in his second term in the White House.
The Wall Street Journal reported Sunday that Trump administration officials had interviewed Antoni for the BLS post, and that former White House advisor Steve Bannon had advocated for him to be nominated.
The Journal also reported that “Antoni called for the removal of Erika McEntarfer as head of BLS on Bannon’s [podcast] show following the release of a weak July jobs report.”