Free Republic

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that Democrats who opposed Medicaid work requirements in President Donald Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” think “poor people are stupid.” Host Dana Bash said, “I’m sure you’ve seen and heard a lot of the concern, including, and especially from Republicans who are the most vocal in Congress, about the fact that those work requirements are going to be very cumbersome to actually prove. And it will inevitably force the people who need that Medicaid coverage off the rolls.” Bessent said, “Well, first of all, the Republicans are not the...

Largest tax cut for American workers aims to cement blue-collar boom and make life affordable againThe same issues that drove the Founders to declare independence from the Crown in 1776 drove 77 million Americans to the polls in 2024: heavy taxes, weak leadership, and an overreaching government numb to the needs of its citizens. President Trump won in a landslide victory by offering powerful solutions to each of these problems. He is the American people's declaration of independence from business as usual in Washington.The president seeks to serve "the forgotten men and women of America." And the One Big, Beautiful...

On Monday’s “Alex Marlow Show,” host and Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow discussed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent rebuffing host Margaret Brennan on inflation Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” Bessent said, “When we were here in March, you said there was going to be big inflation. There hasn’t been any inflation. Actually, the inflation numbers are the best in four years. So why don’t we stop trying to say this could happen, wait and see what does happen.” Marlow said, “This is the exact same thing with the egg prices. We were told the egg prices are not coming down and...

With so much going on these days — on multiple fronts — it's difficult to keep up with it all. On Tuesday alone, there were multiple cabinet secretaries testifying before Congress, President Donald Trump made multiple appearances, commenting on everything from trade to FIFA, the Houthis cried "Uncle!", and India and Pakistan appear primed to bust out into an all-out war. All of which is to say: I didn't have an opportunity to watch Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's testimony before the House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee oversight hearing live. But looking back over some of the key...

In a wide-ranging and unapologetically pro-growth address Monday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent laid out the Trump administration’s economic vision for the next four years, calling on global investors to align with what he described as a “new Golden Age” for American enterprise. Speaking before an audience of business leaders, financiers, and policymakers at the Milken Institute’s annual Global Conference, Bessent delivered what amounted to a comprehensive blueprint for the administration’s domestic agenda—one built around three interlocking pillars: strategic tariffs, aggressive tax incentives, and sweeping deregulation. “Our goal is not simply to grow the economy,” Bessent said. “It’s to re-anchor global...

Just shy of two weeks ago, President Trump spoke with assurance during a media event in the Oval Office with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni that negotiations with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky were in a good place, and that U.S./Ukraine minerals deal could be signed shortly. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent piped up later on Apr. 17 that the timeline was looking closer to the 26th. The images of the two leaders' last meeting in D.C., with Zelensky causing a commotion over the president's and Vice President JD Vance's responses to his strident statements during their sit-down, then departing from the...

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made significant comments about the ongoing tariff tensions with China at a closed-door investor summit on Tuesday in Washington. According to Bloomberg, Bessent told attendees that the standoff with China -- which he said was essentially an embargo -- is unsustainable and that he expects it to de-escalate. He said that while formal negotiations haven't commenced, a deal remains possible. Risk assets have rallied on this.

President Trump has replaced the acting commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service after his appointment just days earlier set off a power struggle between Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the billionaire Elon Musk, five people with knowledge of the change said Friday. Mr. Bessent’s deputy, Michael Faulkender, will be the new acting leader, replacing Gary Shapley, the Treasury Department confirmed on Friday. Mr. Faulkender will be the third acting leader of the agency this week. Mr. Bessent had complained to Mr. Trump this week that Mr. Musk had done an end run around him to get Mr. Shapley installed as...

In the tariff war between China and the United States, a lot of chatter in the Pravda Media is about Xi Jinping's defiance, his outreach to European countries and other less important but collectively significant developing countries, and his retaliatory moves against America. They make it sound like China has a lot of cards to play in the trade war with America. China has put civilian government officials on a "wartime footing” and ordered a diplomatic charm offensive aimed at encouraging other countries to push back against U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs. https://t.co/rZWU2zsARQ— The Japan Times (@japantimes) April 14, 2025Collectively,...

On Saturday night, President Donald Trump strode into the Kaseya Center in Miami to a standing ovation from the raucous crowd attending the UFC 314 event. It was another triumphant Trump appearance at a sporting event. Since his election, he has attended the Super Bowl, the Daytona 500, and a professional golf tournament. President Trump likes sports, and he likes interacting with regular people. His signature rallies are always well attended and festive events with Trump mixing it up with enthusiastic supporters.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday the U.S. holds a substantial advantage over China as the two nations exchange threats in a burgeoning trade war. “I think it was a big mistake, this Chinese escalation, because they’re playing with a pair of twos,” Bessent said during an interview on CNBC’s “Squawk Box.” “What do we lose by the Chinese raising tariffs on us? We export one-fifth to them of what they export to us, so that is a losing hand for them.” The comments come a day ahead of the U.S. raising its duties on China and dozens of other...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” that China’s escalation of tariffs is a “big mistake” because it is playing a “losing hand.” Bessent said, “If we put up a tariff wall, the ultimate goal would be to bring jobs back to the U.S. But in the meantime, we will be collecting substantial tariffs. If we’re successful, tariffs would be a melting ice cube, in a way, because you’re taking in the revenues as the manufacturing facilities are built in the U.S., and there should be some level of symmetry between the taxes we begin taking in...

It was imperative to get the administration’s tariff communications aligned, Bessent told Trump, and more focused on the endgame for Americans: better trade deals with foreign nations, according to people familiar with the conversation.

During an appearance on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent insisted President Donald Trump’s economic plan would be a net benefit to the U.S. economy. Among the positive impacts he offered were reindustrialization, a revitalized private sector and higher wages. Transcript as follows: WELKER: It’s great to have you back after a very big week. Let’s start with the market reaction to President Trump’s announcement of his tariffs. As I just laid out at the top of the program, the markets lost more than $6 trillion in value. Was this disruption always part of the plan,...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent appears on NBC to discuss the current MAGAnomic tariff program and global trade reset. Bessent outlines how the history of President Trump’s tariff approach toward China (’17-’19) did not result in higher consumer prices for goods from China.Secretary Bessent, like the rest of the MAGAnomic team, cuts through the talking points with direct evidence and analysis that destroys the preferred media narrative. Video and Transcript Below: [Transcript] – KRISTEN WELKER: And joining me now is Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Secretary Bessent, welcome back to Meet the Press.SEC. SCOTT BESSENT: Kristen, good to see you.KRISTEN WELKER: It’s...

Tucker Carlson interviews the fulcrum between Wall Street and Main Street in the MAGAnomic policy world, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.Secretary Bessent notes the goal of the tariff plan, and the accompanying economic policy is to give the working middle-class a boost in wealth and simultaneous relief from bad policy that has exclusively benefited the investment class. WATCH:Chapters:0:00 Trump’s Tariff Plan 5:42 The Current State of the Stock Market 8:22 Will Americans See Substantial Tax Cuts Because of Tariffs? 13:16 How Much Money Will America Make Through Tariffs? 14:33 Bringing Manufacturing Back to the US 20:14 Tariff Pushback From Foreign Countries22:16...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made it clear in an interview with CNN that the era of trade imbalances is over, and under President Trump, the U.S. will no longer tolerate unfair treatment. During a discussion with CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, Bessent confidently explained the administration’s position on tariffs and trade policy, signaling that Trump’s economic strategy is deliberate and well thought out. When pressed on how the administration’s policies could impact the auto industry, particularly regarding vehicles made with foreign parts, Bessent was blunt. “If half the cars coming into the United States are foreign-made, that's hard to turn around overnight,...

The United States imposed sanctions on Wednesday on Russia-based people and entities working to help procure weapons and commodities — including stolen Ukrainian grain — for Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis, the Treasury Department said.

The United States is ready to go "all in" on sanctions against Russia, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declared, signaling the administration's readiness to impose even harsher measures to pressure Moscow into peace negotiations. -snip- Bessent was critical of former US President Joe Biden's sanctions approach, describing them as "egregiously weak," particularly when it came to Russian energy. He argued that the weakness in these sanctions allowed Russia's military operations to continue, largely because of concerns about rising energy prices in the US. "A major factor that has enabled the Russian war machine's continued financing was the Biden administration's egregiously...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent ripped into former Vice President Mike Pence during a recent interview. While outlining President Donald J. Trump’s tariff plan, Bessent hit back at Pence’s criticisms of using the trade levies.Bessent detailed President Trump’s tariff strategy, aiming to motivate businesses to relocate manufacturing to the United States: “Mike Pence came out and said, ‘Secretary Bessent doesn’t know what he’s talking about.’ I would tell the former vice president that ‘let them eat flat screens’ is not an economic policy,’” Bessent said.“People want to have good jobs, they want to own a home, they want to have dignity,...