The Senate on Jan. 27 confirmed Scott Bessent’s nomination for Treasury secretary in a 68–29 vote, putting him in a key role for implementing President Donald Trump’s tariff and growth agenda.
The billionaire investor will be spearheading Trump’s plan of cutting taxes and curbing deficits, while putting forward a tariff plan that also facilitates growth.
Bessent has said the U.S. faces economic calamity if Congress does not renew key provisions from Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that are set to expire Dec. 31, 2025. Negotiating the extension of those tax cuts will be one of Bessent’s major responsibilities even as he pushes for 3 percent annual growth, significant trims to deficits, and increasing domestic oil production by 3 million barrels a day.
Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) described the Wall Street veteran as an “example of the American dream in action.”
“He brings a wealth of private sector experience in the economy and markets to his new role, as well as the concern for the needs of working Americans,” Thune said on the Senate floor.
Democrats who opposed his nomination alluded to concerns about his tax dispute with the IRS.
“Like a lot of Wall Street titans, he’s opted out of paying a fair share into Medicare,” said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), ranking member on the committee.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), one of the Democrats who voted against Trump’s pick to lead the Treasury Department, called it a “double standard in America” during an executive committee hearing on Jan. 21.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said Bessent’s nomination further highlights billionaires’ influence on U.S. politics.
“Billionaires dominate the American economy, and Republicans plan to give them more tax breaks,” she said.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) defended Bessent before the vote, saying that the Key Square Group founder has complied with tax laws.
“The issue here is that the IRS wants to change the interpretation of the tax code,” Crapo said. “But the IRS doesn’t get to decide what our tax code says. Congress does.
“The argument that he has not complied with long-standing tax policy and interpretation is false.”
House Financial Services Committee Chairman French Hill (R-Ark.) congratulated Bessent on his confirmation.
“Bessent’s wealth of experience in the private sector has prepared him with deep knowledge of U.S. markets and global finance,” Hill said in a statement. “I look forward to working with him to reinvigorate our financial system, foster innovation, and restore American prosperity.”
In his Jan. 16 confirmation hearing in front of the committee, Bessent discussed various economic issues.
Bessent has expressed how critical it is to extend the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, President Donald Trump’s signature legislation from his first term in the White House.
“We will see a gigantic middle-class tax increase. We will see the child tax credit halved,“ Bessent said. ”We will see the deductions halved. ... It has the potential for a sudden stop.”
The billionaire financier also supports the president’s tariff plans. He highlighted the various benefits associated with trade levies, such as strengthening the U.S. dollar, forcing foreign manufacturers to export deflation, and nudging consumers to change their preferences to support American jobs.
Speaking to Wyden, who stated that tariffs can hurt the working class and small businesses, Bessent disagreed with his remarks.
“The history of tariffs and tariff theory—optimal tariff theory—does not support what you’re saying,” Bessent stated.
The billionaire financier espoused the need for tariffs, stating that “the trade has not been fair,” alluding specifically to communist China.
Calling Beijing “the most unbalanced economy in the history of the world,” Bessent said that the United States “cannot allow a player like this to flood our markets or to flood the world.”
He also noted that China failed to abide by the trade agreement established with the Trump administration before the coronavirus pandemic, particularly on agricultural purchases. As a result, Bessent said he would pursue a “makeup provision” over four years to ensure that Beijing now lives up to the terms of the deal.
The Key Square Group investment fund founder reiterated his support for Federal Reserve independence and defended a president’s right “to make his views known.”
“I think, on monetary policy decisions, the FOMC [Federal Open Market Committee] should be independent,” Bessent said.
Speaking with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Bessent said he would support abolishing the debt ceiling.
“Once President Trump takes office, and if I’m confirmed, if he wants to eliminate the debt limit, I will work with him and you on that,” Bessent said at the time.
Last month, during Congress’s brief fiscal fight to avert a government shutdown, Trump said he “would lead the charge” with Democrats to eliminate the debt limit.
