Trump to Appoint New Federal Reserve Governor and Labor Statistics Commissioner This Week

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President Donald Trump has announced plans to appoint a new Federal Reserve (Fed) governor and a new head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) in the coming days. The move follows the recent dismissal of BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer, which came after the release of unexpectedly weak employment data.

Speaking to reporters on Sunday evening before departing New Jersey for Washington, President Trump stated that he would nominate a new BLS commissioner within three to four days. He also indicated that a decision on a successor to outgoing Fed governor Adriana Kugler would follow shortly. Both positions require confirmation by the United States Senate.

The leadership changes come at a pivotal time for economic policy. President Trump has expressed dissatisfaction with how recent data have been handled, asserting that figures released under McEntarfer’s leadership lacked reliability. “We had no confidence,” he said, without offering specific evidence. “The numbers were ridiculous.”

The White House has defended the removal of McEntarfer, citing the need for new leadership to ensure the integrity of government data. Kevin Hassett, Director of the National Economic Council, told Fox News that recurring large-scale revisions to employment figures have led to widespread distrust. “The data can’t be propaganda. The data has to be something that you can trust,” he said. He echoed the administration’s concern over the increasing frequency and scale of revisions in recent years.

Adriana Kugler’s resignation from the Fed, effective five months before her term was set to expire, offers Trump an earlier opportunity to influence the direction of U.S. monetary policy. Speaking to reporters, Trump speculated that Kugler stepped down because she supported lower interest rates but was overruled by the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC). “They were on the other side of the ballpark,” he said.

Among those reportedly being considered for the Fed governor role are Kevin Hassett, Kevin Warsh of Stanford’s Hoover Institution, and current Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Trump has also expressed interest in replacing Fed Chair Jerome Powell when his term ends in May 2026, though Powell may choose to remain on the Fed board until 2028. In recent remarks, Trump continued his criticism of Powell, calling him a “knucklehead” and stating, “I think he does a terrible job.”

Following Kugler’s resignation, Trump encouraged Powell to step down via social media. The other five members of the Fed’s board of governors are not expected to see their terms expire during Trump’s second term.

The decision to remove McEntarfer has drawn criticism from across the political spectrum. William Beach, who led the BLS during Trump’s first term, described the firing as harmful to public confidence in federal statistics. “It really hurts the statistical system. It undermines credibility in BLS,” he told CNN.

McEntarfer was confirmed to her post in January 2024 by a bipartisan Senate vote of 86–8. Among her supporters at the time were now–Vice President J.D. Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, both of whom were serving as senators.

The Trump administration has argued that new leadership at the BLS and Fed will ensure greater transparency and accuracy in economic reporting. As Hassett noted in an interview with NBC, the president “wants his own people there so that when we see the numbers, they’re more transparent and more reliable.”

Both appointments are expected to play a key role in shaping the direction of U.S. economic policy as Trump continues to push for lower interest rates and greater oversight of federal economic institutions.