Scott Bessent

So the private sector, in essence, has been in recession during the Biden years. And this is an opportunity to right-size the federal government and unleash the private sector again, because it's been hemmed down by excessive regulation, and it's been crowded out by the government.

Look, it is. And I always think that you can never be 100% sure, but you can stay within sight of guardrails and keep moving forward. I can't remember. One of the Sunday morning shows I was on a couple of weeks ago, the commentator asked me, she said, can you guarantee me there won't be a recession? And I said, I can't guarantee you anything. There's nothing that tells me there should be one.

Look, it is. And I always think that you can never be 100% sure, but you can stay within sight of guardrails and keep moving forward. I can't remember. One of the Sunday morning shows I was on a couple of weeks ago, the commentator asked me, she said, can you guarantee me there won't be a recession? And I said, I can't guarantee you anything. There's nothing that tells me there should be one.

Look, it is. And I always think that you can never be 100% sure, but you can stay within sight of guardrails and keep moving forward. I can't remember. One of the Sunday morning shows I was on a couple of weeks ago, the commentator asked me, she said, can you guarantee me there won't be a recession? And I said, I can't guarantee you anything. There's nothing that tells me there should be one.

So I believe that this is going to work, just like President Reagan believed that supply-side economics was going to work. But what I do know is that the old system wasn't working. I think that's right. And if you look at a system that's not working, you got to be brave to change it. So what wasn't working? Would have been really fun for me to come in and just keep issuing a lot of debt.

So I believe that this is going to work, just like President Reagan believed that supply-side economics was going to work. But what I do know is that the old system wasn't working. I think that's right. And if you look at a system that's not working, you got to be brave to change it. So what wasn't working? Would have been really fun for me to come in and just keep issuing a lot of debt.

So I believe that this is going to work, just like President Reagan believed that supply-side economics was going to work. But what I do know is that the old system wasn't working. I think that's right. And if you look at a system that's not working, you got to be brave to change it. So what wasn't working? Would have been really fun for me to come in and just keep issuing a lot of debt.

And it's almost like a bodybuilder is taking steroids. Outside looks great. You're muscular. Inside, you're killing your vital organs. That's what was going on here. But it would have been easy to keep pumping up the economy, borrowing a lot of money, creating a lot of government jobs. There was no controversy when we're doing all that. But you were going to end up in a calamity.

And it's almost like a bodybuilder is taking steroids. Outside looks great. You're muscular. Inside, you're killing your vital organs. That's what was going on here. But it would have been easy to keep pumping up the economy, borrowing a lot of money, creating a lot of government jobs. There was no controversy when we're doing all that. But you were going to end up in a calamity.

And it's almost like a bodybuilder is taking steroids. Outside looks great. You're muscular. Inside, you're killing your vital organs. That's what was going on here. But it would have been easy to keep pumping up the economy, borrowing a lot of money, creating a lot of government jobs. There was no controversy when we're doing all that. But you were going to end up in a calamity.

If you go back and look, you look at the financial crisis in 07-08. Economy looked great right up until then. You go back and you look at the end of the dot-com bubble and then the whole credit problem, the fraud at WorldCom, Enron, some other companies, economy looked great until it didn't. And I think one of the things that we won't get credit for

If you go back and look, you look at the financial crisis in 07-08. Economy looked great right up until then. You go back and you look at the end of the dot-com bubble and then the whole credit problem, the fraud at WorldCom, Enron, some other companies, economy looked great until it didn't. And I think one of the things that we won't get credit for

If you go back and look, you look at the financial crisis in 07-08. Economy looked great right up until then. You go back and you look at the end of the dot-com bubble and then the whole credit problem, the fraud at WorldCom, Enron, some other companies, economy looked great until it didn't. And I think one of the things that we won't get credit for

but that this administration will have done is avoiding a financial calamity. Think about it that they've done an analysis that one of the reasons 9-11 happened because the airlines didn't want to pay for reinforced doors. Yes. They kept pushing back. FAA didn't push hard enough. And now we've got the reinforced doors. So I look at it, we're putting on the reinforced doors before the crash.

but that this administration will have done is avoiding a financial calamity. Think about it that they've done an analysis that one of the reasons 9-11 happened because the airlines didn't want to pay for reinforced doors. Yes. They kept pushing back. FAA didn't push hard enough. And now we've got the reinforced doors. So I look at it, we're putting on the reinforced doors before the crash.

but that this administration will have done is avoiding a financial calamity. Think about it that they've done an analysis that one of the reasons 9-11 happened because the airlines didn't want to pay for reinforced doors. Yes. They kept pushing back. FAA didn't push hard enough. And now we've got the reinforced doors. So I look at it, we're putting on the reinforced doors before the crash.

Like, what's that going to be like? It's going to be the president's decision. And I think his view is this has been going on for a long time for friends and foes. And we're going to see where this plays out. I think what's going to be more important than the discussion with countries is the discussion with companies. So what do companies want to do?

Like, what's that going to be like? It's going to be the president's decision. And I think his view is this has been going on for a long time for friends and foes. And we're going to see where this plays out. I think what's going to be more important than the discussion with countries is the discussion with companies. So what do companies want to do?

Like, what's that going to be like? It's going to be the president's decision. And I think his view is this has been going on for a long time for friends and foes. And we're going to see where this plays out. I think what's going to be more important than the discussion with countries is the discussion with companies. So what do companies want to do?

As President Trump said yesterday, best way to get around the tariffs, build your factory here. And what can we do here at Treasury to help that? We're pushing to get the tax bill done so we can guarantee the tax. low taxes, full depreciation within the first year. We're working with Secretaries Burgum and Wright on energy security, and we're working on getting the regulations down.