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Bulwark Takes

Scott Bessent Is a Political Hack. Treasury Can’t Survive That.

Bulwark Takes

The Bulwark

News, Society & Culture, Politics, News Commentary

4.71.2K Ratings

🗓️ 3 December 2025

⏱️ 17 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In a financial crisis, the markets need to trust the Treasury Secretary and the Fed chair. After watching Scott Bessent posture and preen his way through a NYT interview, it’s clear he can’t be trusted with either role. JVL and Tim give their take on just how dangerous it would be if Trump puts someone this political in charge of the Fed.

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Transcript

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0:00.0

Hello, everyone. This is JVL here with my best friend at the bulwark, Tim Miller.

0:04.9

And this morning, the Secretary of these United States is Treasury sat down, Mr. Scott Besant with, Besant, Besant.

0:15.6

Set down with the great Aaron Ross Sorkland at a New York Times, one of the things they do.

0:23.6

And boy, it was something.

0:28.6

Here it is.

0:29.4

Was it?

0:30.0

I'm going in blind.

0:31.3

You told me that it was so good that I just, we got to watch it together live.

0:34.6

I want people to be able to see my natural facial reaction because they know my views on, you know, he's not my favorite,

0:41.0

let's just say, Mr. Stuffy Shirty.

0:43.5

This is a new normal.

0:44.8

Andrew, there's no new normal.

0:47.0

And, you know, I can tell you that I actually don't read the New York Times anymore.

0:53.0

But sometimes I do watch CNBC, but occasionally people send me articles.

0:59.8

And there's just this fever swamp.

1:02.2

And you're now a pop historian with 1929.

1:06.7

And in 20, 30, 40, 50 years, the New York Times is no longer the paper of record. I'm, you can't go. You know, I read this article, like, President Trump is slowing down. President Trump's mental capacity. Yeah. It is 100% fake. That, like, he only called me twice at 2 in the morning last week instead of three times you're saying he called

1:29.5

you i i believe that he called you at two or three in the morning that you know like that that

1:32.5

that whole narrative and this is why people like this is why young people are going to tick to

1:37.3

you know this story might like somebody sent it to me mike johnsonaguered that he and his wife were so tired.

1:46.3

They gave actually a very sympathetic and funny interview that somehow got twisted on the pages of the New York Times.

1:53.1

Oh.

...

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