Update [6:39 p.m. EST]: The Wall Street Journal is reporting that sources confirm that President-elect Donald Trump has chosen hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent as Treasury Secretary:
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Breaking: Donald Trump named hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent to lead the Treasury Department https://t.co/GGiiIAalVK
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) November 22, 2024
WASHINGTON—Donald Trump has selected hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent to lead the Treasury Department, according to people familiar with the matter, elevating one of the finance world’s most vocal supporters of the president-elect to a crucial position overseeing the incoming administration’s economic agenda.
Bessent in recent months has become a key economic adviser to Trump and his team. He has defended Trump’s economic proposals in the midst of opposition from some on Wall Street, who worry that the president-elect’s pledge to impose sweeping tariffs will trigger trade wars and ultimately lead to higher prices for American consumers.
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A spokeswoman for Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Update [7:10 p.m. EST]: President-elect Trump has weighed in on the Treasury pick of Bessent in a new statement:
“I am most pleased to nominate Scott Bessent to serve as the 79th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. Scott is widely respected as one of the World’s foremost International Investors and Geopolitical and Economic Strategists. Scott’s story is that of the American Dream.
“Scott has long been a strong advocate of the America First Agenda. On the eve of our Great Country’s 250th Anniversary, he will help me usher in a new Golden Age for the United States, as we fortify our position as the World’s leading Economy, Center of Innovation and Entrepreneurialism, Destination for Capital, while always, and without question, maintaining the U.S. Dollar as the Reserve Currency of the World. Unlike in past Administrations, we will ensure that no Americans will be left behind in the next and Greatest Economic Boom, and Scott will lead that effort for me, and the Great People of the United States of America.
“My Administration will restore Freedom, Strength, Resilience, and Efficiency to our Capital Markets. We will reinvigorate the Private Sector, and help curb the unsustainable path of Federal Debt. As a lifelong Champion of Main Street America and American Industry, Scott will support my Policies that will drive U.S. Competitiveness, and stop unfair Trade imbalances, work to create an Economy that places Growth at the forefront, especially through our coming World Energy Dominance. Together, we will Make America Rich Again, Prosperous Again, Affordable Again, and, most importantly, Great Again!”
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Original
President-elect Donald Trump has tapped billionaire hedge fund manager and investor Scott Bessent to serve as Secretary of the Treasury, according to multiple reports.
Bessent is billed as a crypto-currency enthusiast and an advocate of deregulation. He will also be a key figure in using America’s economic power to support its diplomatic priorities.
He has advocated for his version of Japan’s “three arrows” plan as a focus for economic revitalization: 3% real growth, a deficit of 3% of GDP, and “3 million more oil barrels flowing a day from U.S. energy production.”
Scott Bessent, born in 1962 in Conway, South Carolina, is an American investor, board member, and educator. He has been considered for the position of U.S. Treasury Secretary in the incoming Donald Trump administration following the 2024 election. Here is a summary of his… pic.twitter.com/t5gjdPM6bC
— Occidentally on Purpose🥩 (@occidentally) November 12, 2024
Following the trend set in other announcements this week, Bessent has been a Trump loyalist since his first term despite being an Al Gore fundraiser in 2000 and one of George Soros’s inner circle.
Bessent is a known quantity on Wall Street and has Trump’s trust. Those qualities, in combination, promise a swift end to the stagflation of Bidenomics.
