Washington DC - President Donald Trump's administration withdrew its nominee to lead the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a role that's been open since the Republican fired the previous commissioner for reporting underwhelming job growth statistics.

The Senate received paperwork to withdraw the nomination of E.J. Antoni, who worked for the far-right think tank the Heritage Foundation and praised Trump online frequently.

A White House official praised Antoni on Tuesday evening, broadcaster CNN reported, and said another nominee would be announced for the post soon.

Independent advocacy group Friends of BLS, co-chaired by former bureau leaders Erica Groshen and Bill Beach, issued a statement Tuesday urging the appointment of a nominee with "a commitment to gold standard statistics, strong management skills, excellent economics training and a record of public support for the integrity of BLS products and standards."

Antoni had no prior experience working in government, and had frequently attacked the bureau's reporting processes, in line with Trump's criticisms, the New York Times reported.

Following the nomination, media reports revealed he had a history of shocking social media posts, including conspiracy theories and misogynistic rants. GOP Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski also reportedly declined to meet with Antoni.

The role opened up after Trump baselessly accused the former commissioner of labor statistics, Erika McEntarfer, of manipulating data to downplay his administration's accomplishments.

In July, figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed job growth numbers to be at their weakest since the Covid-19 pandemic.

Trump ordered the removal of McEntarfer hours after the figures were published – even though White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett later conceded that the jobs market was indeed cooling.