How do you feel about President Trump’s decision to fire the top BLS official after the agency published a weaker-than-expected July jobs report?

Support (19%) – "It's obvious the May/June revisions were rigged. I mean who misses by 250,000?! Either the source data was initially flawed, in which case competence is in question, or the revision was, in which case integrity was. Either way, considering the impact of this data, firing the head of that department would seem to be in order."

• "Because these reports are impactful, accurate data matters. The same "should" apply to the Federal Gov't, at all levels. Blows my mind how inaccurate the data has been for these reports over the last 4 years, especially b/c of the impact it has just on the markets. For Biden, it was constantly overreported (Economy is booming!) with substantial downward revisions months later; For Trump, under reported (economy is tanking!) and requires upward revisions. In a world were accurate data matters, this shouldn't be so difficult. If you aren't on Team Merica...You're Fired!"

Oppose (66%) – "Trump has made a serious accusation without evidence. There should be an investigation to substantiate such charges. I cannot imagine losing my job in a similar fashion. It's terrible and will surely erode our country's ability to trust in its government."

• "The BLS needs to be free from the political maneuvering that is the hallmark of this administration. Trump uses the same playbook all the time. He doesn't like the outcome. He fires or removes people from their posts, and then complains that the outcome was fabricated to make him look bad. It is tiring. It is bad for public trust in government institutions. It is harmful to the US's place in the global economy."

"This is a dangerous step in denying what one might consider negative data and attempting to manipulate the numbers themselves and shape public opinion as a result. I don’t understand why there isn’t more uproar about this. Like going after top law firms or higher education, Pres. Trump is systematically silencing potentially opposing perspectives. This action further obscures the truth and further polarizes the people of our country."

• "Just like during his handling of the pandemic, Trump is actively working to suppress data that highlights his weak leadership performance. Perception is what matters to him, so he is quick to embrace “alternate facts” and declare anything that conflicts with his narrative to be fake."

"Our labor statistics should be independent and free from overreach. If not, how can we trust that the data aren’t manipulated for political gain? Ironically, by introducing the possibility of data manipulation for political gain and firing the BLS official, President Trump has made it far more likely that the numbers will be manipulated for political gain"

• "As Commissioner McEntarfer was a Biden appointee, Trump could have given a million reason on why he wanted to put his own person in place, or no reason, but he chose to give an explanation that demonstrates a gross misunderstanding of the position and the data analysis, to perpetuate misinformation, and to lie to the American people. It is pathetic."

Unsure/other (15%) – "Politicization of the position is definitely not a good idea. Having said that there should not be extreme revisions. When the revisions are that major then it is reasonable to assume ineptitude. Transparency as to what makes up the jobs report is critical. For example, when the numbers are released - information about which sectors have reported for that month and which ones have not reported for that month should be reported at the same time. If there is one company or sector whose reporting, or lack thereof, is causing the major revisions then they should be publicly named."

• "I wish Department Heads at this level were not appointed by partisan Presidents. These positions should be protected from politics as much as possible. I don't know if he was right or wrong to do this. Some of the reports out there quietly laying down the ideas that give evidence there were lies about things like Russian election interference and biased interviews make me wonder if there is some merit to this reaction. It's getting very hard to tell who is playing fairly and ethically and who is playing politically."