Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent: “This Was His Strategy All Along”

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No one has ever botched the American economy the way Trump has. Don’t just take my word for it. Yesterday on CNN, Janet Yellin, former Fed Chair, said Señor Trumpanzyy’s discombobulated tariff “policy” has increased the odds the U.S. will soon be in a recession slowing down investment and consumer spending— costing the average U.S. household $4,000 a year. “This is the worst self-inflicted wound that I have ever seen an administration impose on a well-functioning economy.”

Right-wing crackpot and delusional ideologue, one of the shot-callers in the White House, had a different perspective Thursday morning:

I’ll forego Miller's opinion and pay more attention to Paul Krugman who noted Thursday that Trump is stupid, erratic and weak. We may, he wrote, be even worse off now that Trump has “paused” his lunatic tariff insanity than before he did! Why?

• Even the post-pause tariff rates represent a huge protectionist shock

• Destructive uncertainty about future policy has increased

• We’re still at risk of a major financial crisis

• The world now knows that Trump is weak as well as erratic

He wrote that “The story of the tariffs so far— at least as other countries will see it— is that Trump announced extreme policies, insisted that he would persist with those policies no matter what, then beat an ignominious retreat. In other words, Trump is a typical bully, full of swagger and tough talk, who runs away at the first sign of adversity.”

Noting that Trump blinked on tariffs just hours after they went into effect Wednesday. Annie Linskey, Josh Dawsey and Merideth McGraw reported that “It took a week for the plunge in the stock and bond markets— along with a sustained campaign by executives, lawmakers, lobbyists and foreign leaders— to prompt Trump to roll back for 90 days a major element of his sweeping tariff plan. The president said the reaction to the tariffs was getting a bit ‘yippy’— like a nervous athlete unable to perform— and he relied on his instincts to change course as he watched the bond market tank and listened to business leaders including JPMorgan Chase Chief Executive Jamie Dimon express fears of a recession. The episode was classic Trump: He took a drastic action, closely tracked the reaction, kept advisers and allies guessing and then changed course. In this case, the extraordinary reversal was announced via Trump’s social-media platform just hours after reciprocal tariffs officially went into effect. He tapped out the post in the Oval Office as he sat with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Trump also significantly raised tariffs on China... ‘This was his strategy all along’ [said Bessent].” 

“Bessent,” they wrote “was flooded with worried calls from Wall Street over the weekend and felt strongly he had to persuade Trump that a pause was needed. It wouldn’t be a capitulation, Bessent argued, because they were going to have so many deals… The message delivered to Trump and his top advisers by CEOs was they needed to find an off ramp… Banking executives— frustrated at their apparent lack of influence with administration officials— turned to Republican lawmakers in recent days to lobby Trump on the tariffs, according to people familiar with the matter. Their message was that Trump was going to tank the economy.”

Trump, an avid consumer of cable news, said he watched Dimon’s interview Wednesday morning with Maria Bartiromo on Fox Business. During the interview, Dimon said a recession was a “likely outcome” of the new tariff program, but also defended the idea of some tariffs as a way to improve trade. He urged the president to give Bessent time to make deals. “I’m taking a calm view, but it could get worse,” Dimon said.

… Trump told reporters Wednesday that he had been thinking about pausing tariffs “over the last few days,” adding “it probably came together early this morning, fairly early this morning.” He said he didn’t consult with lawyers for the wording of his announcement and instead relied on input from Bessent and Lutnick. “We wrote it up from our hearts,” Trump said. “We don’t want to hurt countries that don’t need to be hurt, and they all want to negotiate.”

During the day Wednesday, top administration officials were fanned out to meet with lawmakers, betraying little about the announcement to come.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was testifying about the tariffs before the House Ways and Means Committee when Trump announced the reversal. About 20 minutes after Trump made the announcement, Rep. Steven Horsford (D-NV) finally brought up the shift, asking if Greer was aware of the pause.

“I am, yes,” said Greer. “I understand the decision was made a few minutes ago. It’s been under discussion.”

Horsford grew angry. “This is amateur hour,” he said. “It needs to stop. How are you in charge of negotiations if the president is tweeting about this from wherever the hell he is?”

Bessent pulled out of a lunch event Wednesday with the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative caucus in Congress, shortly before the announcement was made. Members of the caucus learned on their way to the event that Bessent was called into a meeting with Trump, and his deputy would attend in his place.

Those who have watched Trump for years weren’t surprised by the turn of events.

Trump used his social-media platform to make encouraging comments about the stock market Wednesday morning. “BE COOL! Everything is going to work out well,” he posted at 9:33 a.m. ET Wednesday. “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT,” Trump posted at 9:37 a.m. Wednesday. An administration official said no decision had been made at that point.

“How illogical this strategy was became apparent, not just in the markets, but also with expectations of deeper cuts across the economy,” said Marc Short, who was chief of staff to former Vice President Mike Pence.

“He’s a careful studier of the markets, and he talks to a lot of people outside the White House, too,” Short said.

Bessent and other White House aides cast Trump’s move as part of a negotiating strategy where Trump took a maximalist approach to force the world to the bargaining table. 

They noted that China was singled out for increased tariffs because Beijing retaliated against the U.S.

Outsiders who had been alarmed about the tariffs were quick to reinforce the White House’s new message.

“This was brilliantly executed by @realDonaldTrump,” said Bill Ackman, who had been critical of Trump in recent days. “Textbook, Art of the Deal.”

Presumably, Navarro, who went to prison for Trump, will be the fall guy for this mess. And if that doesn’t work… Lutnick.