By FATIMA HUSSEIN and CHRIS RUGABER, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump announced Friday that he’ll nominate former George Soros money manager Scott Bessent, an advocate for deficit reduction, to serve as his next treasury secretary.
Trump also said he would nominate Russel Vought to lead the Office of Management and Budget, a position Vought held during Trump’s first presidency.
Related Articles
Vance takes on a more visible transition role, working to boost Trump’s most contentious picks
Matt Gaetz says he won’t return to Congress next year after withdrawing name for attorney general
Meghan McCain voted for late father in 2024 presidential election
Attorneys want the US Supreme Court to say Mississippi’s felony voting ban is cruel and unusual
Trump convinced Republicans to overlook his misconduct. But can he do the same for his nominees?
Bessent, 62, is the founder of hedge fund Key Square Capital Management, after having worked on-and-off for Soros Fund Management since 1991. If confirmed by the Senate, he would be the nation’s first openly gay treasury secretary.
He told Bloomberg in August that he decided to join Trump’s campaign in part to attack the mounting U.S. national debt. That would include slashing government programs and other spending.
“This election cycle is the last chance for the U.S. to grow our way out of this mountain of debt without becoming a sort of European-style socialist democracy,” he said then.
Associated Press writer Josh Boak contributed to this report.