Scott Bessent, Donald Trump’s Treasury Secretary, says it’s wrong to suggest he and the president are clashing over the dollar.
On Friday, during a CNBC interview, Scott shut down talk that their positions don’t match. “That’s a false choice,” he said, when asked whether Trump liked a weak dollar while he pushed for a strong one.
This came after back-to-back public comments stirred confusion. On Jan. 27, Trump told reporters he wasn’t worried about the falling dollar, saying, “No, I think it’s great.” The next day, Scott said the U.S. has “always had a strong dollar policy,” and that nobody at Treasury was working to weaken the greenback, especially not against Japan’s yen. His comment sent the dollar climbing. Trump’s earlier take had helped drag it down.
Scott tried to bridge the gap. He said the dollar debate isn’t just about words, but whether the U.S. is setting the right conditions for the currency to stay strong. He pointed to Trump’s tax policies, energy plans, deregulation push, and trade efforts. He also mentioned how the administration is trying to regain control over critical minerals.
According to Scott, “Are we making the U.S. the best place for capital in the world? And I think no one’s done that better than President Trump.” That line was his only clear nod to Trump during the entire explanation.
Scott dismisses Fed lawsuit comment as a joke
Scott also had to walk back a separate mess from the day before. During a Senate Banking Committee hearing, he was grilled by Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren over a report that Trump wanted to sue Kevin Warsh, the man he nominated to lead the Federal Reserve.
The issue? Trump allegedly wasn’t happy Warsh wouldn’t cut interest rates.
Warren asked Scott directly: “Can you commit right here and now that Trump’s Fed nominee Kevin Warsh will not be sued, will not be investigated by the Department of Justice if he doesn’t cut interest rates exactly the way that Donald Trump wants?”
Scott replied, “That is up to the president.” The room erupted into cross talk. That phrase “up to the president” lit a fire under the whole hearing.
The next day on CNBC, Scott tried to spin it. He said, “I tried to explain to Senator Warren, who seems to have no sense of humor, it was a joke.” But this time, he left out the “up to the president” line entirely.
Instead, he said Trump respected the Fed and its independence. Whether anyone actually believed that is a different matter.
The Fed is supposed to be free from political pressure. Past presidents usually keep their hands off rate decisions. But that hasn’t stopped Trump.
Warren accused him of launching fake investigations into Jerome Powell and Lisa Cook, two sitting Fed officials. She said Trump has been trying to take control of the central bank “for months and months.”
Now, with Warsh lined up as the next Fed chair, she warned that Trump’s goal is simple: get someone who will do exactly what he wants. “That’s a takeover,” she said.
