Trump pulls Heritage economist E.J. Antoni's nomination to lead Bureau of Labor Statistics

President Donald Trump on Tuesday night reportedly withdrew Heritage Foundation's economist E.J. Antoni's nomination to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). 

Trump nominated Antoni for the post last month after he fired former BLS Commissioner Erika McEntarfer over a weak jobs report partly based on steep downward revisions for May and June. 

The White House has not stated a reason for pulling Antoni's nomination, but his nomination worried economists about the reliability of BLS data under his leadership, Fox Business reported. Antoni is a prominent critic of BLS, having previously voiced concerns about its revisions to the jobs data. 

The Heritage Foundation stood by Antoni in a statement shared with Just The News and confirmed that Antoni would keep his role as the organization's chief economist. 

“Dr. E.J. Antoni continues to be one of the sharpest economic minds in the country," Heritage President Kevin Roberts said in the statement. "E.J.’s immense capabilities and insightful economic analysis have not changed—and we are very proud to have him on our team.

“It is undeniable that BLS needs reform and E.J. was the right man for the job," Roberts continued. "E.J. will keep calling for that reform and serving the interests of the American people from his invaluable role as chief economist at Heritage.”

Antoni has not commented on the decision to pull his nomination so far, and Trump has not announced a new nominee.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.