Trump accuses Biden and Harris of 'massive scandal' as Labor Department releases job creation records

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: The Labor Department's sharp downward revision on new employment creation was promptly seized upon by former president Donald Trump, who claimed on social media that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris' administration had "padded the numbers."

The country's economy added much fewer jobs last year and early this year than previously estimated, according to a Labor Department announcement on Wednesday, August 21.

Monthly payroll statistics overstated new jobs in the US

The Labor Department claims that throughout the year that concluded on March 2024, monthly payroll data inflated new positions by around 818,000. That represented an almost 30 percent downward revision.

The revised numbers are interpreted by economists as another evidence of a contracting labor market, which had held steady over the previous two years while the US economy recovered from a severe recession brought on by the coronavirus outbreak.

Despite high interest rates and growing fears of an impending recession, the jobs boom had persisted.

Donald Trump thrashes Kamala Harris and Joe Biden for America's 'economic ruin'

The vice presidential candidate for the Democratic Party, Kamala Harris, took over as the front-runner of the party's 2024 ticket last month.

Trump, the presidential nominee of the Republican Party, has long criticized Biden and Harris for the high rates of inflation that the American people have had to deal with throughout the three-year economic recovery.

He's now saying that the Biden administration purposefully inflated the employment figures without offering any evidence.

"MASSIVE SCANDAL! The Harris-Biden Administration has been caught fraudulently manipulating Job Statistics to hide the true extent of the Economic Ruin they have inflicted upon America," Trump charged in a statement on his Truth Social platform.

And he argued, "New Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that the Administration PADDED THE NUMBERS with an extra 818,000 Jobs that DO NOT EXIST, AND NEVER DID."

Economists argue the revisions are part of an annual process

However, economists point out that the early adjustments are part of an annual process in which the first monthly estimates are compared to more precise data, which requires more time to obtain.

Jared Bernstein, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, emphasized in a statement that "neither the preliminary nor final revision directly affect estimates of job growth in recent months – important to keep in mind when assessing today's labor market."

The Harris campaign highlighted that "statistical revisions are normal and bump up and down" and that there were 500,000 revisions in 2019 during the Trump administration.

Additionally, they stated that since Biden and Harris took office in January 2021, 15 million jobs had been generated, and the amendment "doesn't change that fact."

Public opinion surveys indicate US economy remains top concern among American voters

In the most recent nationwide poll conducted by Fox News, 38 percent of respondents stated that the state of the economy would be their primary consideration when choosing a presidential candidate, considerably outweighing any other factors.

Furthermore, Trump had a six-point advantage over Harris in the poll, which was conducted from August 9 to 12, regarding who would be better at guiding the economy.

Internet backs Donald Trump, says 'Democrats are liars' 

Netizens supported the former US President after he lashed out at Kamala Harris and Joe Biden on the sharp downward revision of new employment creation.

One X user tweeted, "Largest downward job revision in FIFTEEN years. I'm sure it's just a coincidence." Another added, "It is a scandal , it is their way of running the country.... absolutely scandalous."

"He's right! Everything Dems do is a scandal in case you haven't noticed," remarked one, while someone else penned, "Democrats are liars we all know that." 

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