Note, in the last month, a federal judge ruled that the firing of former FTC Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter by the Trump administration was illegal. Slaughter was also technically a political appointee who required Senate confirmation.
The point is, McEntarfer was not some political hack. She was a career civil servant with a background in the very work she would be overseeing.
https://apnews.com/article/who-is-erika-mcentarfer-bls-fired-by-trump-ae0b3ac36971070265dedf16223ddfd1
Before her confirmation hearing, a group called the Friends of the BLS, made up of former commissioners who served in both Democratic and Republican administrations, members of statistical associations and credentialed economists, said McEntarfer’s background made her a great choice for the job. “The many reasons to quickly confirm Dr. McEntarfer as the new BLS Commissioner all boil down to this: the agency, like the entire statistical system, is undergoing an intense, significant period of change and Dr. McEntarfer’s wealth of research and statistical experience have equipped her to be the strong leader that BLS needs to meet these challenges,” Friends of the BLS wrote.
Both Marco Rubio and JD Vance were among 86 Senators to vote in favor of her confirmation. Only 8 voted against her.
William Beach, who was appointed BLS commissioner in 2019 by Trump and served until 2023 during President Joe Biden’s administration, called McEntarfer’s firing “groundless” and said in an X post that it “sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the statistical mission of the Bureau.”
Former Labor Department chief economist Sarah J. Glynn, who received regular briefings from McEntarfer about BLS findings, said McEntarfer was generous with her time explaining what conclusions could or couldn’t be reached from the data. If the data didn’t support something an administration official was saying, McEntarfer would say so, Glynn said. She also never weighed in on how the administration should present or interpret the data, Glynn said — she would simply answer questions about the data. “She had a sterling reputation as someone who is concerned about the accuracy of the data and not someone who puts a political spin on her work,” Glynn said.
Heather Boushey, a senior research fellow at Harvard University, served with McEntarfer on the White House Council of Economic Advisers and said McEntarfer never talked politics at work. “She showed up every day to focus on the best analysis and the best approach to her field and not get political. That is what I saw from her time and again. She is brilliant and well-respected among labor economists generally,” Boushey said. “She wasn’t coming into my office to talk politics or the political implications of something. She definitely wasn’t engaging on that side of things.”
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