Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday that he sees “no reason” for markets to worry about an impending recession, despite concerns that President Trump’s recently announced tariffs could increase the risk.
Host Kristen Welker questioned Secretary Bessent, asking, “Let me ask you about one of the big questions, recession, as you know, the chances of a recession are rising in the wake of the tariffs announced this week. Do you believe that President Trump’s tariffs are risking the chances of a recession?”
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Secretary Bessent responded, “I don’t, and I think we can see from the jobs number on Friday that it was well above expectations that we are moving forward. So I see no reason that we have to price in a recession.”
Welker also asked about the prospects of President Trump’s budget bill passing Congress: “I know you’ve been one of the officials spearheading the efforts to get President Trump’s budget bill passed on Capitol Hill. It includes the president’s plans for tax cuts, extending the 2017 tax cuts, for example. Are you confident that the president’s budget bill will pass before the August recess?”
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Secretary Bessent expressed optimism, saying, “We are shooting for even a much earlier date. Kristen, I can tell you the underreported story in D.C. It’s fun from our side of the aisle to watch the Democratic chaos but the underreported story is Speaker Johnson has done an incredible and he’s gotten continuing resolutions passed and Thune in the Senate issued reconciliation instructions. Things are moving very quickly.”
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