shawnsebastian.bsky.social

BLS data is the foundation of more economic policy in the US than anyone cares to admit, or even knows. And thus it is hard to even enumerate quickly all the ways this matters. (3/x)

People will focus on the main accountability effects of politicizing BLS. But cooking those numbers also has numerous knock-on policy effects. It’s not just the FOMC that uses BLS data. They guide revenue forecasts, UI payments, allocation formula for dozens of federal programs. (2/x)

I was just informed that our Country’s “Jobs Numbers” are being produced by a Biden Appointee, Dr. Erika McEntarfer, the Commissioner of Labor Statistics, who faked the Jobs Numbers before the Election to try and boost Kamala’s chances of Victory. This is the same Bureau of Labor Statistics that overstated the Jobs Growth in March 2024 by approximately 818,000 and, then again, right before the 2024 Presidential Election, in August and September, by 112,000. These were Records — No one can be that wrong? We need accurate Jobs Numbers. I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY. She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified. Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can’t be manipulated for political purposes. McEntarfer said there were only 73,000 Jobs added (a shock!) but, more importantly, that a major mistake was made by them, 258,000 Jobs downward, in the prior two months. Similar things happened in the first part of the year, always to the negative. The Economy is BOOMING under “TRUMP” despite a Fed that also plays games, this time with Interest Rates, where they lowered them twice, and substantially, just before the Presidential Election, I assume in the hopes of getting “Kamala” elected – How did that work out? Jerome “Too Late” Powell should also be put “out to pasture.” Thank you for your attention to this matter!

Unquestionably the most dangerous and corrupt attack on the independence of US economic data in American history. Trump is firing the head of the BLS, a longtime civil servant confirmed 86-8 by the Senate, simply because the job numbers came in below his expectations today

The totally groundless firing of Dr. Erika McEntarfer, my successor as Commissioner of Labor Statistics at BLS, sets a dangerous precedent and undermines the statistical mission of the Bureau. For a full statement opposing this move, read:

Trump’s first BLS Commissioner, Bill Beach, calls today’s firing groundless and dangerous.
www.friendsofbls.org/updates/2025...

Dr. Erika McEntarfer has devoted her career to public service. She has conducted herself as BLS Commissioner with great integrity. There is no evidence whatsoever that BLS data are politically biased.

#econsky

Trump’s Tax Bill Expands Farm Subsidies. Not All Farmers Will Benefit.

“The monies are not flowing to small- and medium-sized family farms…They’re flowing overwhelmingly to the largest producers.” Trump’s Tax Bill Expands Farm Subsidies. Not All Farmers Will Benefit. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/30/u...

“People are seeing what these policies actually look like—and they don’t like it. Labor unions are speaking out. Community groups are organizing. And there is an opening for a more honest, hopeful, and united vision of what immigration policy could look like in this country.”

Feeding America’s ‘Map the Meal Gap’ reveals stark disparities in rural child hunger. Up to half of children in some rural counties don't know where their next meal is coming from. And more than 80% of counties with the hungriest children are rural. nielseniq.com/global...

Medical debt doesn’t tell lenders whether someone will pay their mortgage or other debts. It tells you someone got sick.

The CFPB tried to give people time to fix billing errors and deal with insurers before their credit took a hit. A federal judge just shut that down. @jmargetta.bsky.social

Hundreds of Iowa Meatpacking Employee Visas Revoked 200 JBS employees from four countries are losing their U.S. work authorization.

"At a July 15 city council meeting in Ottumwa, Iowa, Mayor Rick Johnson announced that JBS — the largest meat processor in the world — was issuing 200 notices to employees from Haiti, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela that their work visas had been revoked."

sentientmedia.org/iowa-meatpac...

Josh Hawley is exhibit #1 of what it means to have a cult leader in charge. He voted to blow up Medicaid & the Affordable Care Act — after vocally saying he was opposed to doing so — & now he’s complaining about it.

He had power to stop this disaster. He chose not to because the leader insisted.

Breaking News: Speaker Mike Johnson said he would shut down the House until September to block a vote on calling for the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files.

USDA Ends Key Support for Black Farmers Amid Trump Anti-DEI Orders The agency will no longer use the term "socially disadvantaged," saying it has sufficiently addressed historic discrimination.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has ended key support for Black farmers and will no longer use the term “socially disadvantaged,” saying it has sufficiently addressed historic discrimination

ACA health insurance will cost the average person 75% more next year, research shows

This is a really big deal that will impact MILLIONS of people:

"For example, if someone paid $60 a month for their health insurance this year, they might be looking at $105 a month next year. "
www.npr.org/sections/sho...

Remembering the Rural Legacy of John Lewis’ Good Trouble Good Trouble Rallies Across the Country Present an Important Opportunity to Reflect on the Long History of Rural Organizing in the United States

When Lewis passed away on July 17, 2020, tributes poured in from across the globe. But in rural towns across the South, people rang church bells, held vigils, and remembered him not just as a national hero, but as one of their own.

ruralorganizing.subs...

Destroying the Fed’s independence to make monetary policy decisions would be a disaster for working people During the presidential campaign, many people noted that a prospective Trump administration could trigger sustained upward pressure on inflation and interest rates if it tried to violate the Federal R...

Read @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social @epi.org, one of the Fed's most persistent and cogent critics for failure to pursue the full employment side of its mandate and advocating lower rates.
www.epi.org/blog/destroy...

Note also that the lawsuit alleges that because race and class are correlated, providing free tuition to lower income students is also racial preference.

They just want a pure aristocracy of inherited wealth

Avelo Airlines to close US West Coast base amid backlash over deportation flights Avelo Airlines, a Texas-based budget carrier, said on Monday it will close its base at Hollywood Burbank Airport as it struggles financially, amid calls to boycott the airline over its decision to operate deportation flights under a contract with the Trump administration.

What actions we take matter! Avelo is feeling the pressure for supporting ICE kidnappings www.reuters.com/business/aer...

www.stopavelo.org

Demand Repair for Black Farmers

Black farmers have shown us how to make a way even when we’re told there’s no way forward.

Demand the Secretary of Agriculture reckon with the truth of our history and delivers justice, equality, and repair for Black farmers.

secure.everyaction.com/p5WXIJPyRUuV...

USDA Ends Key Support for Black Farmers Amid Trump Anti-DEI Orders Lloyd Wright isn’t shocked that the United States Department of Agriculture is reversing a 35-year-old policy meant to help Black farmers in favor of a race-neutral approach. But the 84-year-old, who ...

The MAGA regime is rescinding funding meant to compensate Black farmers for generations of discrimination.

They are denying the reality of white supremacy so they can keep land in the hands of Big Ag corporations and stop us from making the 1% return what they owe.
www.yahoo.com/news/usda-en...

Privatize or downsize the USPS? Rural customers worry either option will hurt them As a new Postmaster General with ties to FedEx assumes control of the agency, postal workers and their customers are bracing for either scenario, especially as corporate America weighs in.

www.kcur.org/2025-07-16/p...

Rural News Clips, July 15, 2025 Farm bankruptcies this year already top 2024 levels; Before tragedy, Texas repeatedly rejected pleas for flood alarm funding; Experts predict more "Alligator Alcatraz" prisons to be built

Headlines from the latest Rural News Clips — subscribe for free!
—2025 farm bankruptcies already top 2024 levels
—Before tragedy, Texas repeatedly rejected pleas for flood alarm funding
—Experts predict more "Alligator Alcatraz" prisons to be built open.substack.com/pu...

A Trump-appointed federal judge struck down a rule that would have wiped $49 billion in medical debt from credit reports, leaving rural Americans (who already have higher healthcare costs and fewer local financial services) at more risk of damaged credit. thehill.com/homenews...

As someone who's lived in rural areas where the two largest employers are the school and the dept of corrections, this is *absolutely essential* for us to extract ourselves from this mess.

Workers at the JBS pork plant in Worthington, Minn., bargained for access to pensions, raises and increased safety protections as part of a national contract the union reached with the world’s largest meat producer this week. The deal, which covers 26,000 workers at 14 plants belonging to the U.S. subsidiary of Brazil-based JBS, creates the first pension a meatpacking employer has offered since 1986.

Wow, big win for meatpackers at UFCW.

“In addition to major wins on pensions and workplace safety, UFCW members secured the 1st-ever paid sick-leave program at JBS, along with retroactive wage increases & improved vacation & paid leave...

"More than 17,500 Minnesotans work in meatpacking..."
#1u

YouTube video by More Perfect Union The Most Corrupt Corporation in the World Is Taking Over Our Food Supply

NEW: JBS, the Brazilian meat-packing giant known for bribery and corruption scandals, just went public.

The company was previously denied access to U.S. markets — until they donated millions to Trump’s inaugural fund.

Now, small farms across the country are sounding the alarms.

Yep. Nothing but GOP talking points from Secretary of Ag Rollins. "We're making Agriculture Great Again by protecting 2 million farmers from the 'death tax.'" Longtime GOP bs. USDA ERS says only 0.3% (that's 3/1000th--the wealthiest farmers) had estate tax liability in 2024.

We are heading toward a #MAGAFarmCrisis.

MAGA politicians think random "able-bodied Medicaid recipients" can replace the highly skilled farm workers they just deported.

Growing our food takes years of education and experience.

These people are clueless about farming and agriculture.

The Permitting Crisis for Renewables A fifth of U.S. counties now restrict renewables development, according to exclusive data gathered by Heatmap Pro.

"The development of new wind and solar power plants is now heavily restricted or outright banned in about one in five counties across the country" heatmap.news/politics/law...