The U.S. Senate confirmed hedge fund manager Scott Bessent as Treasury Secretary today with a decisive majority vote. According to CNN, 68 senators voted in favor, while 29 opposed his nomination.
Key Priorities and Challenges
As the head of the Treasury, the 62-year-old Bessent faces significant challenges, including:
- Addressing the federal debt ceiling and negotiating with congressional Republicans to extend the 2017 Trump-era tax cuts.
- Managing Trump’s proposed tariffs on goods from Mexico, Canada, and China—policies that could pose risks to the U.S. economy.
Despite these challenges, Bessent takes office during a period of robust economic growth, with:
- A low unemployment rate of 4.1%.
- Persistent inflation above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.
Bessent’s Economic Vision
During his confirmation hearing earlier this month, Bessent emphasized his commitment to:
- Making the 2017 tax cuts permanent.
- Reducing the federal deficit by addressing “excessive government spending,” rather than increasing revenue.
His “3-3-3 economic plan” aims to:
- Reduce the federal budget deficit to 3%.
- Achieve a 3% GDP growth rate.
- Boost daily U.S. oil production by 3 million barrels by the end of Trump’s second term.
Background and Historic Appointment
Bessent, a former economic advisor to Trump during the 2024 campaign, is the founder of Key Square Capital Management and a former investment head at Soros Fund Management.
Notably, he is the first openly gay Treasury Secretary and the first member of the LGBTQ+ community to be confirmed in a Republican administration, as reported by the Associated Press.
President Trump lauded Bessent as a “staunch advocate of the America First agenda,” predicting that his leadership will “usher the U.S. into a new golden era” and “secure the U.S. dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency.”
