Trump Fires BLS Commissioner after Disappointing Jobs Report
U.S. President Donald Trump on Friday dismissed Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Commissioner Erica MacEntarfer just hours after the release of a report showing a sharp slowdown in job growth during July.
In a heated post on his Truth Social platform, Trump launched fresh criticism at Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and accused MacEntarfer, appointed under President Joe Biden, of manipulating employment data for political purposes.
'I was informed that our country's job numbers are being produced by a Biden political appointee, Erica MacEntarfer, who rigged the figures before the election to boost Kamala Harris's chances,' Trump wrote. 'We need accurate job numbers, and I have directed my team to fire this political appointee immediately. She will be replaced by someone with greater competence and experience.'
NBC News confirmed that MacEntarfer has already been removed from her post. The BLS operates under the U.S. Department of Labor, currently headed by Trump appointee Lori Chavez-DeRemer.
The abrupt decision came on the same day the BLS reported that the U.S. economy added just 73,000 nonfarm jobs in July, far below expectations. The agency also sharply revised down employment figures for the previous two months, eliminating a combined 258,000 jobs from earlier estimates. This brought the three-month average job growth to just 35,000, the weakest pace since April 2020.
Trump and congressional Republicans have repeatedly criticized the BLS for what they describe as 'large and politically suspicious' revisions to employment data. In his current budget proposal, Trump called for an 8% reduction in the bureau's workforce, a move that raised concerns about the accuracy of its statistics on jobs, prices, and other key economic indicators.
The BLS has increasingly relied on estimated data to fill gaps in employment and inflation reports, amid mounting political pressure from the Trump administration.
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Egypt Independent
8 minutes ago
- Egypt Independent
Trump's tariffs are sending African countries into China's hands
Africa is adjusting to the new reality of US President Donald Trump's tariffs, with countries on the continent facing some of the highest export charges. But what could become a crisis is an opportunity for United States rival China, which has long courted African countries and is now offering them a lifeline. 'We (Africa) are going straight into the hands of China,' Nigerian economist Bismarck Rewane told CNN. 'That is the unfortunate outcome,' Rewane said of Africa's expected further shift toward China, which has emerged in recent years as the continent's largest bilateral trading partner. Four African nations – Libya, South Africa, Algeria and Tunisia – face some of the steepest tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, with charges on exports ranging from 25 percent to 30 percent. Eighteen other countries from the continent were hit with 15 percent levies, a modified tariff package released Thursday by the White House showed. In April, when the US import levies were first announced, Trump pitched them as 'reciprocal' and targeting countries that he said had trade deficits with the US. But Trump instead based his tariffs on countries' trade deficits with the United States – not the tariffs they charge. South Africa, one of the continent's powerhouses, challenged the imposition of a 30 percent tariff on its US-bound exports, saying Trump's decision was not based on 'an accurate representation of available trade data.' An opportunity for China China has offered to soften the impact of US tariffs on Africa, saying in June it would halt charges on imports for nearly all its African partners. 'There is no other opportunity for African countries to strengthen South-South trade (among developing nations) than now,' South African researcher Neo Letswalo told CNN, while urging countries to 'solely turn to China and make it the next US.' 'America is gradually forfeiting its global leadership status,' Letswalo said, adding that the more countries 'become less dependent on the US, the greater opportunity for China to become an alternative.' Before the tariff deadline, the US did not make a trade deal with any African nation despite efforts from the continent to avoid the tariffs, underscoring Africa's place on the White House's priority list. Letswalo described America's failure to negotiate a deal with Africa as 'an open goal for China.' The impact of Trump's tariffs is already being felt in some of Africa's most buoyant economies and some of the continent's poorest, such as Lesotho, which was slapped with a 15 percent tariff. It had previously been hit with a 50 percent tariff – one of the steepest rates – before the charges were modified. Lesotho's Prime Minister Samuel Matekane said in June that the huge tariff, combined with the halt of US aid to the nation of just over 2 million people, 'have crippled industries that previously sustained thousands of jobs.' Trump has described Lesotho, a landlocked nation surrounded by South Africa, as a country 'nobody has ever heard of' – even though trade between the US and Lesotho totaled over $240 million last year, mostly in textiles. A worker executes her duties at the Afri-Expo Textile Factory, which makes clothing for the U.S. market, on the outskirts of Maseru, the capital of Lesotho, July 9, 2025. Siyabonga Sishi/Reuters Before the tariffs, Lesotho benefited from a US trade agreement that allowed it and other eligible sub-Saharan countries to export goods to the US duty-free. Authorities in Lesotho have declared a two-year national state of disaster over the tariffs, as the country braces for their impact, with the textile industry already grappling with massive job losses. Thousands of roles are also threatened in Lesotho's richer neighbor, South Africa, where citrus growers said they were gripped with 'great anxiety' ahead of the August 1 tariff deadline. In a statement this week, the country's Citrus Growers' Association (CGA) warned that 'job losses will be a certainty' if the tariffs came into effect. It added that, 'hundreds of thousands of cartons of citrus are ready in packhouses to be shipped to the US over the next few weeks,' and that implementing the charges 'will mean most of this fruit will be left unsold.' Distribution workers pack tangerines at Goede Hoop Citrus in Citrusdal, Western Cape province, South Africa, July 9, 2025. Esa Alexander/Reuters Other industries in South Africa, such as the automobile sector, also face the risk of economic shocks, analysts said. 'Already, we have companies within the automobile sector threatening to leave (the country) as a result of plummeting business,' Letswalo said. 'The tariffs will add to the burden of pre-existing issues, and if these entities decide to exit South Africa, our already existing unemployment calamities will worsen,' he said. Gwede Mantashe, South Africa's minister of mineral and petroleum resources, told reporters Tuesday that other routes are being sought for South African goods. 'If the US imposes high tariffs, we must look for alternative markets,' he said. 'Our biggest trading partner is China, not the US. The US is number two,' Mantashe added. As South Africa scouts for broader opportunities, however, the citrus growers' group has voiced its reservations, specifically that their products suit designated markets so finding another is not straightforward. Its CEO, Boitshoko Ntshabele, told CNN in a statement that 'the US market remains a priority, and so should improving access to China' and elsewhere. 'There is a deep appreciation of South African citrus by US consumers. Since 2017, our exports to that market have almost doubled. The market has immense potential,' Ntshabele added. Is reliance on China risky? Letswalo believes there are accompanying risks behind the enticing option of relying on Beijing to cushion the impact of Trump's tariffs. Alternating US with China 'could be risky,' he said, 'especially for some nascent industries within the (African) countries.' 'If they're not protected, Chinese products will flood and outcompete them as many African countries are price sensitive markets,' he warned. A large batch of goods, including dump trucks, is assembled at the Yantai Port for export to Africa on July 7, 2025 in Yantai, Shandong Province of China. Tang Ke/VCG/Getty Images China has imposed some imbalanced trade deals of its own in Africa with trade deficits skewed in its favor, according to the China-Global South Project (CGSP), an organization monitoring China's engagement with developing countries. Additionally, the bulk of Beijing's exports to Africa comprise mainly manufactured products, while the continent's exports to China are commonly raw materials. South Africa's Ramaphosa advocated for balanced trade with China when he met his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing last year. Letswalo advised that, while Africa leans on China for trade, it must also seek domestic alternatives. He recommended a swift implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), an agreement signed by nations on the continent to boost trade among themselves. Although established in 2020, implementing AfCFTA has been slow, with just over 20 countries of the continent's 55 trading under the deal. Rewane believes that the US tariffs could inspire Africa 'to build economic resilience and be less dependent on lopsided trade.' Above all, he added, the continent must be 'more inward-looking rather than outward-dependent.'
Egypt Independent
27 minutes ago
- Egypt Independent
US envoy Witkoff visits Gaza aid distribution site as starvation crisis deepens
Steve Witkoff, the United States' special envoy to the Middle East, on Friday visited a controversial US-backed aid distribution site in Gaza, one of three such locations near which hundreds of Palestinians have been killed in recent weeks trying to reach scarce food supplies. Witkoff said he spent five hours in Gaza on Friday to better understand the humanitarian situation in the enclave and to relay it to Donald Trump. The US president said earlier this week that there was 'real starvation' in Gaza, contradicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claims. 'I spoke to Steve Witkoff. He had a great meeting with a lot of people, and the primary meeting was on food,' Trump said early Friday evening. 'And he had, he also had some other conversations that I'll tell you about later, but he had a meeting on getting the people fed, and that's what we want.' Along with US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, Witkoff visited an aid distribution site in the southern city of Rafah, operated by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) – one of only three such operational sites in the blockaded enclave. The GHF was created to sideline the United Nations' role in distributing aid, after Israel complained that UN aid was reaching Hamas. But the new group has been criticized for failing to improve conditions as Gaza's starvation crisis deepens. The UN refused to participate in the new scheme, saying the GHF model violates basic humanitarian principles. More than 1,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli military while trying to get food, hundreds of them near GHF sites, according to the UN. The GHF disputes this. For two months, the scenes at GHF distribution sites have been chaotic, with the Israeli military seen firing towards scores of Palestinians, some of whom have been crushed in the scramble to reach aid. Ambassador Huckabee praised GHF after his Gaza visit, saying Hamas 'hates' the organization because its food reaches Palestinians in Gaza without reaching Hamas. Witkoff said he spent more than five hours in Gaza on Friday to better understand the humanitarian situation. Ambassador Mike Huckabee/X Despite Israel's claims that the UN allowed aid to reach Hamas, an internal US government review found no evidence of widespread theft by Hamas of US-funded humanitarian aid in Gaza. Huckabee also praised GHF for distributing more than 100 million meals to Gaza since it was launched in May. But other aid agencies have warned that this is insufficient. If 100 million meals have been distributed to each of Gaza's 2.1 million people, that works out at just over one meal a day for 47 days for every resident. The GHF has been operating for nearly 70 days. A senior Hamas official condemned Witkoff's trip as little more than a photo opportunity. 'Mr. Witkoff, Gaza is not an animal farm that requires a staged personal visit to take some personal photos in front of the death traps overseen by your American companies,' Basem Naim, a former Palestinian health minister in Gaza, said in a statement shared with CNN. 'Random gunfire' Palestinians said that the Israeli military shot at them while they waited to receive food near the same distribution hub visited by Witkoff on Friday. The nearby Nasser hospital in Khan Younis said it had received at least three people who were killed and six who were injured by gunfire near the hub. It said many other injured people were being treated at a Red Cross field hospital. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it fired warning shots to prevent a group of people advancing toward its troops, after calling on the group to distance itself. The IDF said it was not aware of any casualties as the result of its fire but was investigating the incident. A US embassy spokesperson also said it had not received 'reports of clashes or injuries of any kind in the vicinity of the visit.' CNN has asked the GHF for comment. Eyewitnesses told CNN the Israeli military shot at people who had gathered at Al Tina, where residents wait before moving on to the distribution site at al-Shakoush. Abu Armanah is seen at Nasser Hospital in Khan Yunis on Friday. Abdallah F.s. Alattar/Anadolu/Getty Images Abu Armanah, who was being treated for a gunshot wound to his abdomen at Nasser hospital, added: 'People are literally battling each other. Witkoff and his visit are nonsense.' 'As soon as Witkoff was in the area, there was random gunfire. The shooting intensified, along with drones and quadcopters in the air, and they started firing at people,' Ahmad Abu Armanah told CNN shortly after the incident. Bodies were 'scattered all over the place,' he said. Mahmoud Awad, another witness, told CNN he was 'shocked' by the violence he saw at the hub. 'Today was madness,' he said. 'As we arrived, young men started getting shot. There was gunfire, and it was direct,' he said. 'We were shocked to hear that the American envoy could come under these conditions.' Later on Friday night, the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS) said that Gaza City's Al-Quds Hospital received at least 12 people who were killed and 90 others injured after the 'targeting of crowds of civilians' by Israeli forces as the civilians were waiting for aid trucks in southwestern Gaza City's Nabulsi area. CNN has reached out to the Israeli military for comment. Shifting diplomacy Witkoff's trip to Israel was his second in two weeks. Last week, he abruptly pulled US delegates out of Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar, accusing Hamas of negotiating in bad faith. He said the Trump administration would explore 'alternative options' to bring the hostages home and 'create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza.' Hamas reportedly later chose to stop engaging in peace talks. A senior Israeli official said Thursday that Israel and the US are forming a new understanding on Gaza, following Hamas' reported withdrawal from negotiations. 'An understanding is forming between Israel and the United States that, in light of Hamas's refusal, there is a need to shift from a framework focused on the release of some of the hostages to one aimed at the release of all hostages, the disarmament of Hamas, and the demilitarization of the Gaza Strip,' a senior Israeli official said on Thursday. 'At the same time, Israel and the United States will work to increase humanitarian aid, while continuing military operations in Gaza,' the official added. Meanwhile, in a Thursday statement, Hamas said it is committed to continuing negotiations toward a permanent ceasefire and complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, provided the humanitarian crisis in the enclave improves considerably. 'It is essential to improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation significantly and to obtain a written response from the enemy regarding our response,' Basem Naim, a senior member of Hamas' political bureau, told CNN. 'This is a condition to go back to negotiations.'
Egypt Independent
an hour ago
- Egypt Independent
Netanyahu postpones decision over military action in Gaza to next week, source says
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has postponed making a decision on the actions his country's military will take in Gaza if Hamas does not agree to a ceasefire deal, a source familiar with the matter told CNN on Friday. A decision will no longer come this week, the source said. This comes amid internal disagreements in the Israeli government about its preferred course of action in the enclave. One idea on the table, if the militant group does not agree to a deal, is to encircle Gaza City and other population centers, while another is to 'conquer' the city, the source said. Different ministers are in favor of different plans, the source added. On Thursday, a senior Israeli official said that Israel and the United States are forming a new understanding on Gaza, as Hamas reportedly withdrew from ceasefire and hostage deal negotiations. 'At the same time, Israel and the United States will work to increase humanitarian aid, while continuing military operations in Gaza,' the official added. The shift comes as Hamas has disengaged from ceasefire and hostage negotiations, according to two sources familiar with the matter. Hamas' disengagement follows the US and Israel pulling their delegations from talks in Doha, Qatar, with US special envoy Steve Witkoff at the time accusing Hamas of negotiating in bad faith. Despite that move, a senior Israeli official had told CNN they would be prepared to return to Doha if Hamas changed its position. On Thursday, Hamas said it was committed to continuing negotiations toward a permanent ceasefire and complete withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, but conditions in the enclave would first have to improve 'significantly.' The faltering peace talks come amid a catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, where scores of people are starving to death. All of Gaza's 2.1 million people are now food insecure, without reliable access to enough affordable, nutritious and healthy food, the United Nations said this week. According to the enclave's health ministry, 900,000 children are going hungry, and 70,000 show signs of malnutrition. 'It is essential to improve the catastrophic humanitarian situation significantly and to obtain a written response from the enemy regarding our response,' Basem Naim, a senior member of Hamas' political bureau, told CNN. 'This is a condition to go back to negotiations.' In a separate statement, Hamas said it was ready to 'engage immediately in negotiations again upon the arrival of aid to those in need and to end the humanitarian crisis and famine in Gaza.' The statement added that continuing negotiations 'under the conditions of starvation loses its substance and effectiveness.' CNN previously reported that Hamas was considering hardening its position in negotiations. Senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mardawi said Wednesday there was no point in continuing to engage in negotiations as long as Gaza's starvation crisis continues.
