US President Donald Trump is planning to make new appointments to two key institutions in the coming days. This includes filling the vacant position at the Federal Reserve and appointing new directors to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
The openings in question occurred on Friday. The first Fed post was opened by the surprise resignation of Board Member Adriana Kugler, while the second position was left vacant after Trump fired Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer.
Trump told reporters on Sunday that he was considering several candidates for the Fed and would soon appoint a replacement for McEntarfer. “I have a few names in mind, and I’ll probably announce them in the next few days,” he said.
Kugler’s term was set to end in January, but he decided to leave early, effective August 8. He did not provide a reason in his letter to Trump.
Kugler, who served on the Fed’s board, was also a permanent member of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), which sets interest rates in the U.S. economy. Board members also have a say in banking regulations.
Kugler, whose term lasted less than two years, largely aligned with Chairman Jerome Powell’s policies. Powell, however, has been a frequent critic of Trump. Trump has previously stated that future Fed nominees will be considered for their propensity to vote for interest rate cuts.
Krishna Guha, a global policy strategist at Evercore ISI, said Kugler’s resignation “accelerates Trump’s drive to bring the Fed into line.” Guha believes Trump could use the vacancy to appoint a potential replacement for Powell. Possible candidates include former Fed Governor Kevin Warsh, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, and National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett.
McEntarfer’s dismissal, meanwhile, comes on the heels of Friday’s weak nonfarm payrolls data. According to the BLS, only 73,000 new jobs were added to the US economy in July, while the figures for the previous two months were revised downward by a combined 258,000.
Trump criticized McEntarfer in a post on Truth Social on Sunday, holding him responsible for “the biggest calculation errors of the last 50 years.” While revisions to monthly employment data are commonplace, such corrections have become more frequent in recent years as the BLS has experienced a decline in survey responses. Indeed, the agency downgraded its total employment data by 818,000 jobs for the 12 months through March 2024.
Speaking to CNBC, National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett said, “Transparency and reliability in labor force data are crucial. The market positions itself based on this data. Therefore, a fresh perspective is needed.”
However, McEntarfer’s dismissal sparked backlash due to concerns that an institution like the BLS, which is expected to be technical and impartial, could become politicized. “The politicization of the Fed has been much discussed in recent months, but the politicization of the data collection process is just as dangerous,” JPMorgan Chase Chief Economist Michael Feroli commented.
*This is not investment advice.