Washington (AP)Scott Bessent, a proponent of deregulation and budget reduction, has been selected by President-elect Donald Trump to be his next Treasury Secretary.
Bessent, who formerly backed Democrats, is now a fervent Trump fan. He supports extending the tax cuts that Congress granted during Trump’s first term while also reducing expenditure.
Four facts about the South Carolina millionaire who will oversee the country’s finances if confirmed by the Senate are as follows:
He worked for George Soros and donated to Democratic causes
Bessent made contributions to a number of Democratic causes in the early 2000s, most notably Al Gore’s presidential campaign, before joining Trump as an adviser and donor. Additionally, he was employed by George Soros, a prominent Democrat backer.
His well-known 1992 wager against the pound, which produced enormous profits on Black Wednesday when the pound was decoupled from European currencies, was one of Bessent’s significant contributions to Soros’ London investment operations.
He speaks regularly about deficit reduction, while supporting extending Trump s tax cuts
Although estimates from various economic analyses of the costs of the various tax cuts range between approximately $6 trillion and $10 trillion over ten years, Bessent has supported extending elements of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, which Trump signed into law in his first year in office.
In order to offset the costs that the tax extension would bring to the federal budget, Bessent advocates for changes to current taxes and spending cuts.
On November 6, Bessent told CNBC that it will be a negotiation with the Republican Congress. Many of the Republicans who will lead those committees have already spoken with me, he said. There is strong support for pay-fors in the Republican Congress. We’ll have to negotiate.
He has discussed the necessity of addressing the country’s debt in conversations with the media. This debt and deficit, in my opinion, will be the main concern of the day. It worries Americans, I believe. He contends that a program to reduce the deficit should be the first step in lowering consumer prices.
He views tariffs as a sanctions tool
During his campaign, Trump suggested imposing a 60% tax on Chinese goods and a 20% tariff on all other imports into the US. Tariffs are typically viewed by mainstream economists as an ineffective means of government revenue raising and prosperity promotion.
In August, Bessent told Bloomberg that tariffs will mostly target China during a second Trump presidency and that he sees them as a one-time pricing adjustment rather than an inflationary measure. Tariffs, in my opinion, can be thought of as an economic sanction in a sense. You might impose a tariff or other sanctions on China if you disagree with its economic policies, which include overproducing and flooding the market. It’s a response against currency manipulation as well.
Additionally, he stated last week in an opinion piece on Fox News that tariffs are a helpful instrument for accomplishing the president’s foreign policy goals. Tariffs can play a key role in securing cooperation on stopping illegal immigration and interdicting fentanyl trafficking, opening foreign markets to U.S. goods, encouraging allies to increase their defense spending, or discouraging military aggressiveness.
I would suggest layering in tariffs gradually, he told CNBC.
He would be the first openly gay treasury secretary
He would also be the first openly LGBTQ cabinet member in a Republican administration to be confirmed to the position.
Richard Grenell, who is openly gay, was appointed interim director of national intelligence by Trump in 2020. Nevertheless, Senate confirmation was not required for the position.
“I wouldn’t have believed you if you told me in 1984, when we graduated and people were dying of AIDS, that 30 years later I’d be legally married and we’d have two children via surrogacy,” Bessent said in an interview with the Yale Alumni Magazine in 2015.
President Joe Biden nominated Pete Buttigieg to head the transportation department, making him the first out LGBT member of the Senate to be appointed to the Cabinet.
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