Treasury secretary-designate Scott Bessent to make plea during hearing: ‘Opportunity of a generation’
Scott Bessent, founder and CEO of global investment firm Key Square Group, was a key economic policy adviser and fundraiser for the Trump campaign.
Scott Bessent, President Trump’s pick for Treasury secretary, plans to address Trump’s economic vision for the nation during his Senate confirmation hearing.
In a transcript of his written remarks obtained by FOX Business, Bessent begins by discussing his roots in the South Carolina Lowcountry.
“My father was in serious financial trouble when I was young,” he wrote. “When I was 9 years old, I started working two summer jobs and I haven’t stopped working since.”
Scott Besent, founder and CEO of Key Square Group LP, in an interview during the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, July 16, 2024. (Vincent Alban/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
“My life has been an ‘only American’ story that I am determined to preserve for future generations. Today, I believe President Trump has the opportunity to usher in a new economic era that will create jobs, wealth and prosperity for many people. All Americans.”
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Later in his statement, Bessent made a specific call to action regarding “safety[ing] supply chains are vulnerable to strategic competitors,” and called for “careful sanctions” to protect America’s national security and economic interests.
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“And critically, we must ensure that the US dollar remains the world’s reserve currency,” Bessent’s statement continued. “Productive investments that grow the economy must be prioritized over wasting money that causes inflation.”
Bessent, the founder and CEO of global investment firm Key Square Group and a former partner of Soros Fund Management, was a big supporter of Trump during the 2024 election, and warned that if Congress does not act accordingly, “Americans will face a big the biggest tax hike in history, a $4 trillion tax hike.”
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“We must make permanent the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 and implement new pro-growth policies to reduce the tax burden on American manufacturers, service workers and seniors,” Bessent is expected to tell the Senate Finance Committee. “President Trump was the first president in modern times to recognize the need to change our trade policy and stand up for American workers.”
Scott Bessent speaks at the National Conservative Conference in Washington DC, July 10, 2024. (Photos by Dominic Gwinn/Middle East/AFP via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Bessent, who has taught at Yale University, talked about Trump’s plans to impose higher tariffs on imports and did not exclude China from his remarks, but he has said in the past that China’s trade has shut down American industry.
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“Committee members, these are some of the many important goals that President Trump has set for me and others on his economic team,” concluded Bessent’s testimony. “I firmly believe that, if confirmed, and with your advice and support, we can usher in a new, balanced era of prosperity that will lift up all Americans and rebuild communities and families across the country.”
The Senate Finance Committee is responsible for holding a confirmation hearing on Bessent’s nomination and referring it to the floor for a confirmation vote.
Fox News Digital’s Eric Revell, Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and Louis Casiano, and Reuters contributed to this report.
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