How Scott Bessent Won Over MAGA and Wall Street
The Treasury secretary nominee cultivated allies in Trump’s orbit who have come to see him as a brainy avatar of their vision.
Scott Bessent on Capitol Hill on Dec. 11, 2024.
Photographer: Al Drago/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Scott Bessent wasn’t a familiar name in Republican political circles before Donald Trump nominated him to be Treasury secretary. “You know Scott Bessent?” Trump asked his guests from the stage of a reception this month at Mar-a-Lago. “Nobody heard of this guy.”
Yet the macro hedge fund executive beat out several rival contenders to get the nod for one of the most powerful jobs in global economics and finance after deftly pulling off a tricky political feat: He managed to convince both MAGA populists and Wall Street that he was on their side.