Chuck Grassley: “as the leader has just said, I come to the floor for the same purpose: to talk about my vote in favor of Mr. Bessent to…”

“as the leader has just said, I come to the floor for the same purpose: to talk about my vote in favor of Mr. Bessent to be Secretary of the Treasury. This Cabinet position is one of the most important positions in any administration. The Secretary is the tip of the spear for a President's domestic economic agenda. Moreover, the Secretary is a very key player in international affairs, with responsibilities covering international trade, global finance, and foreign sanctions--and that is just to name a few. Given the current challenges we face as a nation, the next Treasury Secretary will have a full load on their plate. The United States is facing what former Clinton Treasury Secretary Larry Summers recently called ``the biggest fiscal sustainability problem since the Civil War.'' At the same time, the expansionist ambitions of Russia in Europe and China--particularly China's pursuit of economic hegemony--threaten the international economic order. Having met with Mr. Bessent, I am confident he is up to the task. He has indepth knowledge of economic history. In fact, he taught a class on the subject at Yale University. That and his decades-long career in finance make him uniquely qualified to be our next Secretary of the Treasury. He is acutely aware of the risks posed to our national economy by our $36 trillion national debt.…”