In firing the head of the agency that produces monthly jobs figures, President Donald Trump alleged that the recent weaker-than-expected numbers were phony and that positive numbers reported before the 2024 election were manipulated to make him look bad. It’s a familiar cadence Trump has adopted in reacting to jobs reports: He treats the figures as legitimate when they are favorable to him and fraudulent when they are less than stellar or seem to benefit his opponent. Suggesting President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were responsible, Trump was reacting to the news that U.S. employees had added 114,000 jobs in July — 35% fewer than expected — and that the unemployment rate was at its highest level in nearly three years.