Economists relieved as White House withdraws controversial pick to lead Bureau of Labor Statistics

<p>Donald Trump wanted EJ Antoni to head agency, but critics said he was too partisan and ‘exceedingly unqualified’</p><p>Economists are expressing relief that the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/trump-administration">White House</a> withdrew its nomination for head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the government agency that reports key economic data.</p><p>In August, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/donaldtrump">Donald Trump</a> nominated EJ Antoni, chief economist at the conservative Heritage Foundation and a co-author of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/project-2025">Project 2025</a>, to replace Erika McEntarfer, whom Trump <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/aug/01/trump-fires-erika-mcentarfer-labor-statistics">fired</a> after the bureau released revisions to its monthly jobs report that showed weak job growth over the summer.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/oct/01/trump-administration-withdraws-ej-antoni-bureau-of-labor-statistics">Continue reading...</a>