Who is Scott Bessent, Trump's Pick For Treasury Secretary?

Key Takeaways

• Scott Bessent, Donald Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary, was an economic advisor during his campaign and championed an agenda of tariffs, lower taxes, and deregulation.
• Bessent is a hedge fund manager who previously worked for liberal billionaire George Soros.
• Bessent views tariffs as a negotiating tool rather than a blunt instrument, suggesting that it's less likely Trump will implement broad and steep tariffs that economists say could stoke inflation.

Scott Bessent, Donald Trump's pick for Treasury Secretary, is a veteran Wall Street executive who advised Trump during his presidential campaign and has promoted his economic agenda of tariffs, lower taxes, and reducing federal regulations.

Trump announced the pick Friday in a post Truth Social, his social media platform, selecting the billionaire over several rival candidates whose names had been floated in press reports. Treasury Secretary is the White House's top financial job, overseeing the IRS, banking regulations, and managing the nation's $36 trillion national debt.

"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, [sic]" Trump posted.

Bessent could play a key role in the government's management of the economy at a time when several crucial deadlines are approaching. Lawmakers must decide how to handle the debt ceiling, which is set to be re-imposed in January on Jan. 2 ahead of Trump's inauguration, and the 2017 Trump tax cuts, many of which expire in 2025.

Bessent's Views on Policies

Bessent's selection could allay some fears among investors that Trump will impose sweeping tariffs he proposed during the presidential campaign, including a 60% tariff on goods from China, and a 20% tariff on all imports. Economists widely believe tariffs stoke inflation and damage the economy as merchants pass higher costs on to customers.

In an editorial for Fox News this month and a talk at the Manhattan Institute think tank this summer, Bessent emphasized that tariffs could be used as a negotiating tool to get better trade deals from other nations without actually imposing them.

"I think that given Donald Trump's credibility and what he has done in the past on tariffs that we may not have to get to tariffs but the threat of tariffs will change the the quality and the fairness of a lot of historically poor trade deals," Bessent said at a Manhattan Institute event.

At least one economist suggested Bessent's influence in the administration would make it less likely Trump would impose broad, economically damaging tariffs.

"Bessent would probably push for a cautious approach on tariffs," Bernard Yaros, lead U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, wrote in a commentary ahead of his selection as Treasury secretary.

Bessent has advocated for cutting taxes and reducing government spending and regulations, standard conservative positions that Trump said he would pursue. He has also praised Trump's plans to restrict immigration and increase energy production.

Bessent's Background

Bessent has a long record on Wall Street and has held no government positions, according to press reports about his career. The billionaire runs Key Square Capital Management, the hedge fund he founded in 2015. Before that, he was the top financial advisor to George Soros, the liberal billionaire donor to Democrats, who is frequently criticized in the right-wing media.

And its not just Soros, Bessent has previously worked with many famed investors such as former-Soros partner Jim Rogers, short-seller James Chanos and Stanley Druckenmiller, before founding his own hedge fund.

Like Trump himself, Bessent's political allegiances have changed over time. In addition to his long career with Soros, in 2000, he raised funds for Democratic presidential candidate Al Gore.

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