WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. Senate confirmed billionaire investor Scott Bessent on Monday to serve as President Donald Trump’s treasury secretary, giving him the delicate balancing act of cutting taxes and curbing deficits while putting forward a plan on tariffs that doesn’t jeopardize growth.
The South Carolina resident will be the first openly gay individual in the role, a historic first as Trump seeks novel ways to implement a policy agenda driven by both billionaire business leaders with concerns over regulations and a populist base that wants government leaders to fight for them.
Bessent, a past supporter of Democrats who once worked for George Soros, has become an enthusiastic supporter of Trump.
He has said the U.S. faces economic calamity if Congress does not renew key provisions of Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that are set to expire Dec. 31, 2025. Negotiating the extension of those tax cuts will be one of his major responsibilities even as he has also pushed for 3% annual growth, significant trims to deficits and increasing domestic oil production by 3 million barrels a day.
Bessent cleared the Senate Finance committee on a 16-11 bipartisan vote. Democratic Sens. Mark Warner of Virginia and Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire approved Bessent’s nomination in committee.
However, he faced pushback from Democrats on unpaid tax liabilities.
Democrats say Bessent has engaged in tax avoidance by failing to pay nearly $1 million in Medicare taxes related to his limited partnership in his hedge fund. Bessent, meanwhile, takes issue with his tax liability to the IRS and is in litigation over the tax bill. He committed during his confirmation hearing that he would pay the tax bill if a court rules against him.
Trump took his time before settling on Bessent as his nominee. He also mulled over billionaire investor John Paulson and Howard Lutnick, whom Trump tapped for commerce secretary.
The treasury secretary is responsible for serving as the president’s fiscal policy adviser and managing the public debt. He is also a member of the president’s National Economic Council.
With Trump’s return to the White House and his Republican Party controlling majorities in Congress, his outsider Cabinet choices are getting confirmed despite initial skepticism and opposition from both sides of the aisle.
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In his testimony, Bessent committed to maintaining the IRS’ Direct File program — which allows taxpayers to file their returns directly to the IRS for free — at least for the 2025 tax season, which begins Jan. 27. Republican lawmakers say the program is a waste of money because free filing programs already exist, although they are not popular.
He also said during his confirmation hearing that the Federal Reserve should remain independent from the president’s influence and that U.S. sanctions on Russian oil should be more aggressive.