NEWS: Hearing Goes Off The Rails After Bessent Accuses Wyden's Son Of Meeting With Epstein

[0:00] Secretary Bessett, you may make your opening statement. [0:06] Chairman Crapo, Ranking Member Wyden, and members of the committee, [0:11] thank you for convening today's hearing. [0:13] I'm grateful for this opportunity to discuss President Trump's 2027 budget, [0:17] which builds on this administration's progress in unleashing a new era of economic expansion. [0:23] Could you pull the microphone a little bit closer? [0:25] Sure. [0:26] I last appeared before this committee, just a few weeks before the Senate passed the working families tax cuts. [0:32] So on the heels of the most successful filing season in IRS history, [0:37] I'd be remiss if I did not begin by thanking the committee for helping to deliver this once-in-a-generation bill to the president's desk. [0:45] This day, under President Trump, we celebrated how much more money hard-working Americans kept, [0:51] not how much the government took. [0:54] Over 62 million tax returns claimed at least one of the president's signature new tax cuts. [1:00] No tax on tips, no tax on overtime, deductibility of American car loan interest, [1:05] and enhanced deduction for low- and middle-income seniors. [1:08] All told, the average refund increased by over 11%, with refunds increasing by 18%. [1:14] But as important as what this legislation achieved is what it prevented. [1:20] If opponents of the working family tax cuts had their way, [1:23] our economy would have absorbed the largest tax hike in its history, over $5 trillion. [1:30] 90% of American taxpayers would have seen their standard deduction slashed, [1:36] while 40 million families would have seen their child tax credit halved. [1:40] Instead, this committee held the line, and the American people had a better tax day because of it. [1:46] Notably, President Trump's pro-growth policies don't stop at putting more money back in the pockets [1:53] of working middle-class families. [1:55] They extend to placing the American dream within the closer reach of their children. [2:01] For context, nearly 40% of Americans have no exposure to our great U.S. equity market. [2:07] No stake in the companies they helped to build. [2:11] Trump accounts represent a profound reimagining of that arrangement. [2:15] They will ensure that every American child can benefit from private ownership and compound growth, [2:21] that every American child, in short, is born a shareholder. [2:25] To date, nearly 6 million Trump accounts have been opened, [2:28] with 1.4 million eligible for the $1,000 seed contribution. [2:33] Of course, as his tax cuts deliver relief for working-class Americans, [2:38] President Trump's economic agenda is bolstered by two other distinct but reinforcing levers, [2:43] trade and deregulation. [2:45] Let me briefly address both in turn. [2:48] First, the president has undeterred his determination to open markets for U.S. goods and services [2:53] while rebuilding U.S. manufacturing capacity. [2:57] Over the 12 months ending March 26, the trade deficit for goods declined by approximately $370 billion [3:05] compared to the same time frame ending March 25, the economy has added 313,000 net private sector jobs [3:15] and 13,000 manufacturing jobs in the past two months. [3:20] Firm capital expenditures rose at an annual rate of over 17% in the first quarter, [3:25] and companies are investing trillions to build and expand here at home. [3:29] American industry is winning again to the benefit of American workers. [3:33] A whole-of-government approach, meanwhile, is coupling our manufacturing revival with a great regulatory reset. [3:40] Properly calibrated regulation is essential for economic growth, capital formation, employment, and higher wages. [3:46] So at the outset of this administration, President Trump set the ambitious benchmark [3:51] of slashing 10 existing regulations before issuing a single new one. [3:56] In 2025, we shattered the goal with a ratio of 129 to 1. [4:02] As a result, the regulatory actions generated more savings last year [4:06] than in those of the prior Trump administration combined. [4:10] Separately, any one of our initiatives on trade, tax cuts, and deregulation would be substantial. [4:16] Taken together, they are transformative. [4:18] Before President Trump took office, our trading partners exploited America's markets, [4:24] our regulatory states smothered businesses, and our tax code was poised to punish workers and job traders. [4:30] Today, his policies are driving lower taxes, bigger paychecks, and broader prosperity. [4:35] So I thank you on this committee for its partnership and this critical work, [4:40] and I look forward to building upon our stride through the president's budget for the year ahead. [4:44] Thank you. [4:45] And I do want, I had hoped to keep this in terms of the economy. [4:52] Senator Wyden has mendaciously slandered the Treasury Building [4:57] in an attempt to cover up his son having an investment meeting [5:02] with Jeffrey Epstein to ask for funding. [5:08] Thank you. [5:09] Mr. Chairman? [5:12] Yes. [5:12] Let's be clear here. [5:16] Nobody is interested in the ramblings of a capo [5:20] in the most corrupt regime in American history. [5:23] We want to get some facts about this deal. [5:26] That's what we're here for. [5:27] Thank you. [5:28] Well, thank you, and I will ask my questions first today. [5:31] And we would like to hear what Adam Wyden and Jeffrey Epstein talked about. [5:36] Your son's largest investment position was Rick's cabaret. [5:40] So did your son and Jeffrey Epstein talk about pole dancing [5:44] as he begged him for money using your limited credibility?