Trump Alarms the Statisticians

The American Statistical Association (ASA) has expressed its 'alarm' at President Trump's 'disregard for the long-standing protocols protecting the nation's sensitive data', following a tweet hinting at the results of a jobs report prior to its public release.

The ASA, described as the world's largest community of statisticians and the oldest scientific society in the United States, joined with its partners in the 'Count on Stats' movement to issue the statement after the President sent 'What may be viewed as a harmless Tweet' but was 'in fact a breach of trust'. It explains: 'We urge President Trump to review the directive that requires the executive branch to withhold all comments on federal data until one hour after the data have been released publicly. Such early hints about these numbers can create artificial market disruptions, which is why safeguards have been established to protect these carefully produced data. They must be released at the correct time, without hints or insinuations'.

The statement concludes: 'The proper handling of federal statistics, including the jobs report issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is essential to our economy, society, and democracy. Anything less is a disservice to our nation. The federal statistical community follows the protocols governing their activities designed to protect the integrity of our federal statistics. The President should do the same'.

The Association has previously made public its objection to the 45th President's policies - as opposed to just his behavior - on at least one occasion, issuing a statement in opposition to his Immigration Executive Order in January 2017, and urging members to sign a petition against it (www.amstat.org/asa/News/ASA_Issues_Statement_in_Response_to_President_s_Executive_Order_on_Visas_and_Immigration.aspx ).

Web site: www.amstat.org .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.