Trump blasted the revision of employment data as a Democratic conspiracy, accusing Biden and Harris of conspiring to manipulate federal economic data.
Former US President Trump claimed on Wednesday that revising federal employment data was a conspiracy by the Biden administration in favor of the Democratic Party.
According to an analysis report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Wednesday, the US economy added 0.818 million fewer jobs during the period from March 2023 to March 2024 compared to the initial report. This revision is the largest since 2009 and has lowered the employment growth rate last year by 0.5% compared to the initial report. Normally, revised data only increases or decreases the employment level by 0.1% compared to the previous year.
The revised data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is consistent with economists' expectations, as economists predict that the US will cut up to 1 million job positions compared to the previously announced employment total. The agency recalculates job gains based on new information obtained after the monthly employment report is released.
Nevertheless, without evidence, Trump claims that this revision proves a conspiracy by Biden and Harris to manipulate federal economic data.
"Big Scandal! The Harris-Biden administration manipulated employment statistics to conceal the true extent of the economic damage they have caused to the United States," Trump posted on his Truth Social social media site.
Trump also stated that the Biden administration "inflated numbers" and "added an additional 0.818 million jobs that simply do not exist and have never existed."
On Wednesday afternoon, local time, at a campaign event in North Carolina, Trump reiterated his claims, stating, "This is not a revision. This is an outright lie." In his post, Trump said, "The real numbers are even worse, and if Harris gets another four-year term, millions of jobs will disappear overnight, and inflation will completely destroy our country."
Trump has been criticizing Biden on the economy and inflation issues, and now he is criticizing Harris. During their tenure, the economy and inflation peaked in June 2022. Trump also predicted that if Biden was elected in 2020, the US economy and stock market would collapse, and he reiterated this claim again this year. He said, 'Your life savings will be wiped out. If Trump wins, we will have the greatest economy in history once again.'
However, economists say that these preliminary revisions are part of the annual process of cross-checking the initial estimates with more accurate data, which take longer to obtain.
In a statement, Jared Bernstein, chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, emphasized that both preliminary revisions and final revisions do not directly affect the estimates of recent months' employment growth, which is important in assessing the current labor market.
The Harris campaign team emphasized that 'statistical revisions are normal and can fluctuate.' There was a revision of 0.5 million during Trump's tenure in 2019. They also pointed out that since Biden and Harris took office in January 2021, they have created 15 million jobs, and this revision 'does not change that fact.'
Julia Pollak, Chief Economist at ZipRecruiter, wrote on social media platform X: 'I have always been amazed and impressed by the professionalism, non-partisanship, and transparency of the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It is quite a unique treasure that does a lot of work with meager funding and helps all of us make wiser decisions.'
Ernie Tedeschi, former Chief Economist at the Biden White House, also pointed out online that there have been data revisions during Trump's tenure.
The revision by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday may exacerbate concerns that the Federal Reserve may lag behind the situation in cutting interest rates, as the Fed has kept rates at a high level for the past 23 years to curb inflation. Opinion polls consistently show that the economy remains the top concern for American voters.
According to the latest national poll by Fox News, 38% of respondents stated that the economy is their top issue in deciding whether to vote for the president, far ahead of all other test questions. According to the survey conducted from August 9 to 12, Trump is 6 percentage points higher than Harris in terms of better guiding the economy.