In a strongly worded statement, President Donald Trump has accused federal agencies of manipulating U.S. jobs data to discredit his administration and the Republican Party. Reacting to the latest employment figures, Trump claimed the numbers were deliberately “rigged” to portray the economy in a negative light under his leadership.
“These Jobs Numbers were RIGGED to make Republicans, and ME, look bad,” Trump stated, drawing parallels to what he described as a similar scenario during the 2024 presidential election. He pointed to the period immediately following the election, specifically November 15, 2024, when job numbers were revised downward by more than 818,000—an unusually large correction that Trump labeled “a TOTAL SCAM.”
The former president also took aim at Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, referring to him as “Jerome ‘Too Late’ Powell,” and expressing frustration over what he perceives as mismanagement or bias at the highest levels of economic oversight.
Despite his criticism of the reported data, Trump maintained that the broader economic picture remains strong. “The good news is, our Country is doing GREAT!” he added, suggesting that the fundamentals of the U.S. economy are resilient and that any negative portrayal is politically motivated.
Trump’s remarks are likely to fuel continued debate over the accuracy and transparency of government-released economic statistics. While job number revisions are not uncommon and are based on updated data, the magnitude and timing of such adjustments have become a point of contention in politically charged environments.
As the 2028 presidential race looms on the horizon, Trump’s claims are expected to intensify scrutiny of how economic data is collected, revised, and communicated to the public—raising broader questions about trust, transparency, and the intersection of politics and statistics.