A heated political clash unfolded as Ben Ray unleashed criticism at US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, demanding an apology to the American people over allegations of “fleecing Americans.” The confrontation drew attention to concerns about economic policy, accountability, and the financial pressures facing ordinary citizens. The exchange highlighted growing political tensions over how the government handles economic issues and whether Americans are receiving fair treatment from those in power.
#BenRay #ScottBessent #HeatedClash #USPolitics #PoliticalClash #FleecingAmericans #ApologyToAmericans #US Treasury #EconomicPolicy
~HT.318~ED.420~GR.508~VG.HM~
#BenRay #ScottBessent #HeatedClash #USPolitics #PoliticalClash #FleecingAmericans #ApologyToAmericans #US Treasury #EconomicPolicy
~HT.318~ED.420~GR.508~VG.HM~
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NewsTranscript
00:00Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
00:01Secretary Besant, should Americans who illegally evade their taxes be investigated and prosecuted?
00:10Yes.
00:12Secretary Besant, should people and organizations facilitating money laundering for Iran, North Korea, or Hamas be prosecuted?
00:22Yes.
00:23What about laundering money for Mexican drug cartels?
00:26Yes.
00:27Should a person who traded and profited on insider information be prosecuted?
00:33According to the law, they should.
00:36Appreciate that.
00:37Mr. Secretary, as a result of President Trump's $10 billion lawsuit, the Department of Justice, on behalf of your department,
00:44settled with President Trump by creating a $1.776 billion slush fund to pay for his supporters and criminals.
00:51Were you either directly or through your staff asked to sign the original agreement?
00:57Again, Senator, you are not here at the early part of the meeting.
01:00I saw you on TV.
01:01Well, congratulations.
01:02And you would know that I'm unable to answer those questions.
01:05And they should be referred to Attorney General Planch.
01:07Mr. Secretary, what about the addendum to this agreement?
01:09Are you familiar with what the addendum is?
01:12I'm not sure what you're referring to.
01:13Are you familiar with this giveaway from the IRS that says President Trump and anyone that knows him or does
01:19business with him or part of a business, they get off scot-free?
01:22Are you aware of this?
01:24Again, I refer you to Attorney General Blanche.
01:28Are you Attorney General Blanche's client?
01:32The IRS and Treasury are a client of the Department of Justice.
01:37So is that a nice way of saying yes?
01:39You're a client.
01:40He's your lawyer.
01:43He represents...
01:44You're the Secretary.
01:44Are you the Secretary of Treasury?
01:47Yes is the answer.
01:48Department of Justice.
01:51Scott Bessent, let me ask you this question, sir.
01:53Are you the Secretary...
01:55In my personal capacity, Tom Blanche is not my attorney.
01:57Correct, sir.
01:59Mr. Secretary, Scott, let me ask it this way.
02:03Scott, are you the Secretary of Treasury for the United States government?
02:07Yes.
02:08Appreciate that.
02:09The Department of Justice represents the IRS and the Department of Treasury in this lawsuit, correct?
02:14Correct.
02:15Are you aware of this addendum?
02:17You're telling me DOJ gave the President this without you knowing about it?
02:23Again, they settle on the power of a half.
02:26That's not how the law works, sir.
02:27I'm not a lawyer, but you have a bunch of them behind you.
02:29You should see the faces they're making at me behind you.
02:31They're all scowling at me back over here.
02:33Well, I think that's a different reason, sir.
02:36Well, for whatever it is, they're doing it.
02:39Mr. Secretary, my concern is that this addendum's not been getting a lot of attention.
02:44There's colleagues on this panel that think this slush fund is a bunch of bullshit.
02:49And they've called out to say get rid of it.
02:51Now, people need to say, are you okay with one person in America because the Secretary
02:57of Treasury, I'm guessing, conferred with the Department of Justice because you're named
03:02on this lawsuit, sir.
03:05These are all the transactions from the President as well.
03:08I'm going to ask you this next question as well.
03:10You were bragging to one of my colleagues that you've been sanctioning people doing bad
03:14things in America.
03:16People that get sanctioned, like Iran or terrorists, they're told not to do business in the United
03:22States with partners.
03:23Is that your understanding, sir, me as a layman?
03:26It is.
03:27You hold these bad people accountable.
03:28I congratulate you for that.
03:30So, this little giveaway to President Trump and his family gets them off scot-free.
03:39Does every American become part of this addendum?
03:43If someone didn't pay their taxes or violated tax law or did bad things, are they told, can't
03:49prosecute you, you're good.
03:50Everyone going back to the date of this, or is this only for President Trump and his affiliates?
03:54Senator, do you have specific knowledge that President Trump's being audited?
03:58Sir, I have specific knowledge of this addendum that you don't know a damn thing about that
04:03is for the Department of Treasury that your lawyer at the Department of Justice signed you
04:09up for.
04:09The reason I'm asking this question is because President Trump's sons signed a deal, as you
04:20know, with World Liberty Financial, with a bunch of folks you sanctioned.
04:25And now, as part of this, there's an addendum that says President Trump and his kids and
04:32anyone affiliated with him, I don't know if it's current wives, former wives, people that
04:37just did transactions with him, they're off scot-free.
04:41You know, that has a new way, a new ring to it, this is scot-free, because the Department
04:46of Treasury and the IRS is not going to go after him, sir.
04:49This is wrong.
04:50This is lawless.
04:50I hope our colleagues will look at this addendum, if I could offer this into the record, Mr.
04:55Chairman, for those that haven't seen it yet.
04:56Without objection.
04:59Come on, man.
05:00There's a better way of doing this, sir.
05:02That's all we're saying here.
05:03So, look, I appreciate it if you don't want to talk about a lawsuit.
05:06That's your prerogative to answer that way.
05:08But to say that you, as a client, as Secretary of the U.S. Treasury, does not know what the
05:14Department of Justice is giving away to people, come on, man.
05:18That's just not on the up and up, sir.
05:20I hope we can do better.
05:21You don't understand the way the protocol works, and we receive advice and accept their
05:28settlements.
05:28You're telling me, as the Secretary of U.S. Treasury, you don't know that the President
05:33of the United States, who I think you work for, got a sweetheart deal from the Department
05:39of Justice, who's your lawyer.
05:40I do know.
05:41You're in line for the presidency, Scott.
05:43I do know that the President of the United States and 400, many of his employees, had the
05:48largest tax leak in history.
05:49And I know, here's his filing shirt of all the insider trading.
05:52Do you want to apologize on behalf of the American government?
05:55Scott, you should apologize to the American people for fleecing them and giving this
05:59away to Donald Trump, man.
06:00That's what you should do.
06:02We can agree to disagree.
06:04Senator Warnock.
06:05That we'll agree on.
06:10Thank you, Brother Chairman.
06:13Last month, I asked the President's nominee to lead the Federal Reserve what I thought
06:21was a simple question, but he tried to dodge it.
06:25His answer was cute.
06:27I'm not sure the American people who were struggling were laughing.
06:30So I'll ask you the same question and see if I can get a clearer answer.
06:33President Trump has said that his grade of the economy, his words, is a, quote, plus, plus,
06:41plus, plus, plus.
06:45He said this before he sent energy and gas prices soaring with this illegal war in Iran,
06:52a war that's costing taxpayers billions of dollars, a billion dollars or more per day,
06:59turbocharging inflation.
07:00So I'll ask the Secretary of the Treasury the same question.
07:03Given all of the challenges facing ordinary Americans, our political differences aside,
07:11what grade would you give the U.S. economy right now?
07:14Which challenges other than temporarily elevated prices would you identify, Senator?
07:21I'm asking you what grade would you give the economy?
07:24I think we have the makings of one of the strongest economies in history.
07:29We've had 2.6 percent growth.
07:31So you.
07:32And core inflation had dropped.
07:35Food inflation, since President Trump began, as much as you all want to disagree.
07:39I got it.
07:40It's 2.5 percent.
07:41So you agree with the President?
07:43You would give the economy a plus, plus, plus, plus, plus.
07:47I think we have all.
07:48From where you sit.
07:49I think we have all the makings for a very strong economy.
07:52I think that we have temporary elevated prices that will come back down.
07:58I got it.
07:59So you're telling Americans it's not so bad.
08:02Americans give the Trump economy a failing grade.
08:06You and I can disagree, but this is not about us.
08:11They give the economy a failing grade because they can't afford anything.
08:15Folks back at home at Georgia, whom I represent, are struggling.
08:20Let me finish.
08:23To just make their lives work.
08:25And they know President Trump's Iran war and the tariff taxes are only making things worse.
08:31Talk to farmers in Georgia.
08:32They'll tell you that.
08:33But I'm not so sure folks fully grasp the long-term crisis that's also brewing for our children and our
08:42grandchildren.
08:43Wars do not pay for themselves.
08:46And this year, under the Trump administration's economic policies, the $31 trillion national debt exceeded GDP for basically the first
08:58time since World War II.
09:00Think about that.
09:01Now, to be fair, debt did exceed GDP during the COVID-19 pandemic, but that was only briefly as GDP
09:11crashed as a result of a once-in-a-century pandemic.
09:16The big, ugly bill alone will add nearly $5 trillion to the national debt, something that I do care about.
09:25And I think it matters.
09:26I think it's interesting that Republicans talk about it when Democrats are in charge.
09:31But I haven't heard much discussion about the national debt lately.
09:35According to our nonpartisan scorekeepers in the Congressional Budget Office, it will add $5 trillion to national debt.
09:41Do you still think that driving deeper into debt to extend billionaire tax cuts were a good investment?
09:47Sir, that 90% of the filers who availed themselves on President Trump's signature policies make below $100,000.
09:57And if you want to know who is responsible for the American people, you all torched them during the Biden
10:02administration.
10:03I'm not sure if you were part of that.
10:05But we had 21.5%.
10:07Look, Joe Biden has been out of office two years.
10:11And the fact that you all keep talking about it tells you everything.
10:14So, sir, I'm asking you a basic question.
10:19Do you think that going into debt to extend billionaire tax cuts was a good investment?
10:23Yes or no?
10:24I disagree with the categorization of billionaire tax cuts when, in fact, most of the tax cuts went to working
10:30Americans.
10:31All of those, the tax, the tax, according to the, according, according to.
10:35Senator, you are quoting the Congressional Budget Office, which.
10:39According to the Yale Budget Office, the Yale Budget Lab.
10:43The Yale Budget Lab is a bunch of Biden hats.
10:46Well, you should talk to the people in Georgia.
10:49They will tell you, sir, that whatever tax relief you think you gave them was more than taken up by
10:58these tariffs.
11:01According to the Yale Budget Lab, the administration's tariffs cost families three times as much as they got back in
11:08tax cuts.
11:08But I don't have to talk to folks at Yale.
11:10I talk to the folks in Georgia.
11:12How about the Iran war, which is costing tens of billions of dollars and counting?
11:16You previously said we have plenty of money for the war.
11:18War has increased the national debt.
11:20Is that spending still a good idea, sir?
11:22Yes or no?
11:23Sir, do you think it's a good idea to spend so that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon?
11:27Sir, I'm not.
11:28Sir, sir, do you think it's a good.
11:30So you do think it's a good idea?
11:33I think preventing.
11:34You think the Iran war makes.
11:35I think just as many people historically, when President Obama was in office, said that Iran may not have a
11:41nuclear weapon.
11:41Obama left office in 2016, sir.
11:45I know, but I'm saying there are many people on this committee who said Iran should never have a nuclear
11:49weapon at any cost.
11:51I agree with that.
11:51And they seem to.
11:52They should not have a nuclear weapon.
11:53And they're closer, thanks to this administration's policy.
11:56Absolutely not, sir.
11:57And the Strait of Hormuz is still closed.
12:01And you should tell the people in Georgia that this war is a good idea.
12:05I think they'll disagree.
12:06Senator Cassidy.
12:08Hey, Secretary Vassin.
12:09Thanks for being here, sir.
12:11We know Social Security has gone insolvent in six years.
12:14Ask your predecessor in Trump 1 what was the plan to do about it.
12:18And he said that would be a second Trump administration deal.
12:21Now we're in the first half of the president's second term.
12:25And obviously we're now only six years away.
12:28At that time we were like 12 years away from insolvency.
12:32Social Security will account for 20% of federal expenditures.
12:38And I was told once that it accounts for 20% of our long-term accrued liability, accrued debt.
12:47What's the president's plan to address Social Security insolvency?
12:52Mr. Sir, we have to get our short-term house in order first.
12:55We inherited a mess.
12:576.9-
12:57Mr. If I may interrupt.
12:59I don't mean to be rude.
13:00If we wait to get our short-term house in order, we will be three years away from insolvency.
13:07I've been working on this.
13:08It is amazing since I've been working on this over the last five years.
13:12It is amazing how much it's already deteriorated.
13:17It's just amazing.
13:19In five years, it's gotten so worse.
13:22Are we really going to wait until we get – I'm not challenging, I'm just asking.
13:27Are we really going to wait until we're not going to do anything?
13:31I'm just not sure about that.
13:33Senator, you've got to crawl, walk, run that the – we – with these deficits, with this
13:41debt that was run up in the previous administration with 6.9% deficit to GDP.
13:46But –
13:46But –
13:47But highest ever, when we weren't in war, we weren't in recession, we brought it down
13:51to 5.4.
13:52If I may, if I may, the Social Security Trust Fund is funded by the Social Security tax,
13:59which is segregated from general revenue.
14:03Now, if we speak about the debt and deficit, whatever the – I'm not touching that right
14:08now, except insofar as context, we have to do something.
14:11That is general revenue, but wherever that comes from.
14:14If we're speaking about social, that is segregated.
14:17That is a Social Security revenue problem and expenditure issue.
14:23So, to me, that's segregated, again.
14:26So, is there a plan to do anything about the segregated fund with a segregated revenue stream
14:31and a segregated expenditure pattern?
14:33Well, Senator, part of it is the revenues aren't – the source of the revenue is not
14:38segregated because the more Americans who work, the more – the higher paying jobs they
14:43have, the more it goes into the Social Security trust fund.
14:46I accept that, but that's an indirect effect.
14:48And is that the only plan the administration has currently to hopefully increase the number
14:53of jobs and the better paying jobs and hope that that – because I've run – I've got
14:57a big spreadsheet on this.
14:59That is inadequate to address the problem.
15:02Every day, 10,000 boomers become eligible for social.
15:07And the drain on this is just incredible.
15:10It's just going down.
15:12That will not solve the problem.
15:14And, again, I don't mean to be at all confrontative.
15:17I'm just trying to set the context.
15:18Sir, I remember my first visit to your office.
15:20You were kind enough to share the spreadsheet on a screen with me.
15:24Yeah, so I'm gathering that the administration does not have a plan to address – and I'm
15:30saying that not in any way except to say by your answers that the only response so far
15:36would be the indirect – indirect side of it.
15:40Now, on a bipartisan basis, we have been working on something that would attempt to address this.
15:46It is going to take the president, the administration, at some point being involved.
15:52At this point, it's in Congress.
15:55It involves creating an investment fund, much as we have already done with the federal railroad
16:00retirement system, a plan that Senator Wyden voted for when he was in the House of Representatives
16:05that took the federal railroad retirement system from going insolvent, and now it's paying
16:10benefits with fewer workers and more retirees and doing extremely well.
16:15It's also based upon what the Canadians have done with their Canadian pension fund, which
16:19was also going insolvent, and they've been able to address that.
16:30Again, Senator, we will work on anything, but we are going to guarantee that the benefits
16:38of the government remain as they are.
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