The potential to more than double the scope of #Trump’s #tariffs has alarmed economists & some congressional #Republicans, while other WH allies are concerned about the logistical challenges of a complicated new #import #tax regime. The precise nature of these new duties has spurred extensive discussions at the highest levels of the admin, w/VP #JDVance, #Commerce Secy #HowardLutnick, WH aide #PeterNavarro & #Treasury Secy #ScottBessent all playing a role in the talks….

#Trump’s #US #Treasury Secretary #ScottBessent says the rare #minerals *deal* [#extortion] with #Ukraine is in limbo for now. “I think we have to see if President #Zelensky wants to proceed,” he said on “Face the Nation” on CBS. “What’s the use in having an economic agreement that’s going to be rendered moot if he wants the fighting to continue?”

Just take everything Trump people say & flip it.

Read: “…if Trump wants to proceed…” & “…if #Putin wants the fighting to continue…”

The Ukrainian president has made clear that exploiting his country’s precious geographical & #energy resources will be one way to rebuild its economy & cities after the eventual end of the war. But the offer tendered by #Trump’s Treasury Secy #ScottBessent, while being lauded by US officials as a generous ladder to prosperity for #Ukraine, is not really a “deal” at all.

“I don’t believe we have the legal authority to stop an authorized payment certified by an agency,” he wrote to the group on Jan 24. #DavidLebryk, who had been a federal employee for >35 years, was pushed out of his job days later for refusing to give Krause access to the system. Late on Jan. 31, a Friday, #ScottBessent authorized entry for a team led by Krause after Lebryk’s departure.

The emails viewed by NYT undercut #Treasury’s explanation for why Krause & his team were given access to the payment system. That system disburses >$5T in funding on behalf of much of the federal govt.

The department, now led by Secy #ScottBessent, has said that Krause, a Treasury staff member, & his team are conducting an “operational efficiency assessment” that does not involve blocking agency payments.

Alliance for Retired Americans, AFGE, and SEIU v. Bessent
https://www.citizen.org/litigation/alliance-for-retired-americans-afge-and-seiu-v-bessent/

"In his first week as Treasury Secretary, #ScottBessent gave #ElonMusk ’s “DOGE” full access to the data of the Bureau of the Fiscal Service and computer systems that house the #data. He did so without making any public announcement, providing any #legal justification or explanation for his decision, or undertaking the process required by #law for altering the agency’s disclosure policies."

Officials affiliated w/ #ElonMusk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” #DOGE have been asking since after the election for access to the system… — requests that were reiterated more recently, including after #Trump’s inauguration.

…When #ScottBessent was confirmed as #treasury secretary on Monday, #DavidLebryk ceased to be the acting agency head.

#ScottBessent, likely the next #Treasury Secy, [attended]…
#KohHarada, COO of #Aleo, a privacy-focused #blockchain, said Bessent was “pretty coy about things, but the fact that he was even there was very interesting.”

Aleo, which has raised >$200M from investors including #SoftBank & #AndreessenHorowitz, chose to establish in the #US while many rivals launched from #offshore jurisdictions like the #CaymanIslands as a shield from #regulations.

Trump nominates Wall Street investor Scott Bessent as treasury secretary
https://www.npr.org/2024/11/22/nx-s1-5189652/trump-scott-bessent-treasury-secretary-cabinet-pick

* Wall Street investor
* one of Trump's top economic advisers
* former protégé, Democratic mega donor George Soros
* founded/runs hedge fund Key Square Group
* argues Trump's proposed tax cuts, looser regulations on businesses will boost U.S. economy

#USpol #ScottBessent #TreasurySec #USTreasury
#Trump2 #GOP #fascism #authoritarianism #Project2025
#capitalism #billionaires #libertarianism #tariffs