Donald Trump’s dismissal two weeks in the past Bureau of Labor Statistics Commissioner Erika McEntarfer and nomination of EJ Antoni as her alternative is producing loads of “inside baseball” chatter among the many political class.

However did the president — as uncouth and ham-handed as his strategies are — bump into a reality that was hiding in plain sight: that the federal government financial knowledge relied upon by markets and enterprise leaders for the allocation of a whole lot of billions in capital simply is not very correct?

“I probably would have fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics too,” wrote Ray Dalio, founder and now former CEO of hedge fund big Bridgewater. “Its process for making estimates is obviously obsolete and error-prone, and there is no good plan in the works for fixing it,” he continued.

Dalio famous that the huge downward revisions in Might and June employment knowledge included with the July report had been “symptomatic” of the rot throughout the BLS. Personal estimates, mentioned Dalio, had been much better. “I know a lot about because of how I use data to follow the economy and bet on where it’s going,” he mentioned.

Trump’s nominated alternative atop the BLS, EJ Antoni, has referred to as the company’s knowledge “BS” and earlier this week instructed suspending month-to-month employment studies in favor of quarterly releases till enhancements may be made.

The BLS produces not simply employment knowledge, but additionally the Client Value Index, which for a few years has confronted criticism from all quarters for not precisely describing the inflation strain felt by Individuals.