‘E.J. will ensure that the numbers released are honest and accurate,’ the president said of the new nominee.
President Donald Trump recently nominated E.J. Antoni, chief economist at The Heritage Foundation, to be the next commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, shortly after terminating Erika McEntarfer.
Antoni, who has a PhD in economics and has written countless articles and participated in numerous interviews, will need to be confirmed by the Senate before leading the influential statistics agency.
With a Republican majority in the upper chamber, Antoni has high odds of confirmation in the proceedings.
Here is what to know about the nominee.
Praise From Colleagues
Trump, writing in an Aug. 11 Truth Social post, said Antoni “will do an incredible job in this new role.”
“Our economy is booming, and E.J. will ensure that the numbers released are honest and accurate,” the president said.
Kevin Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation, called Trump’s selection “a stellar choice.”
“EJ Antoni is one of the sharpest economic minds in the nation—a fearless truth-teller who grasps that sound economics must serve the interests of American families, not globalist elites,” Roberts said in a statement.
Derrick Morgan, executive vice president of the foundation, complimented Antoni’s skill to “distill complex economic principles into clear language for all Americans.”
Stephen Moore, the co-founder of the Committee to Unleash Prosperity, said on social media, “if anyone can fix this broken agency and give us accurate numbers,” it’s Antoni.
Frequent Data Critic
While the bureau recently captured the spotlight regarding employment revisions, the federal agency has been criticized for its data gathering efforts and overall quality, dating back to the previous administration.
Antoni had been one of these frequent, outspoken critics for years.
In an Aug. 4 X post, Antoni stated that there are superior methods available to gather the information needed for the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
There are better ways to collect, process, and disseminate data—that is the task for the next BLS commissioner, and only consistent delivery of accurate data in a timely manner will rebuild the trust that has been lost over the last several years: https://t.co/yztQIoj2zx
— E.J. Antoni, Ph.D. (@RealEJAntoni) August 4, 2025
“There are better ways to collect, process, and disseminate data,” he said. “That is the task for the next BLS commissioner, and only consistent delivery of accurate data in a timely manner will rebuild the trust that has been lost over the last several years.”
In December 2022, the Philadelphia Federal Reserve determined that job growth had been overstated by 1.1 million, based on state payroll employment data.
The revelation sparked questions about how the bureau could have made such an error.
At the time, Antoni pointed out to The Epoch Times that the regional central bank’s figures were more aligned with the bureau’s monthly household survey than the establishment portion of the non-farm payrolls report.
The establishment survey—Current Employment Statistics—interviews businesses and government agencies, effectively measuring the number of jobs. The household dataset—Current Population Survey—measures people, not jobs, removing duplication.
By Andrew Moran
