Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday President Donald Trump’s aim is for Main Street businesses and consumers to thrive even as the administration’s shockingly steep tariffs could tip the economy into a recession.
“For the last four decades, basically since I began my career in Wall Street, Wall Street has grown wealthier than ever before, and it can continue to grow and do well, but for the next four years,” Bessent said at the American Bankers Association’s Washington Summit.
“The Trump agenda is focused on Main Street. It’s Main Street’s turn. It’s Main Street’s turn to hire workers. It’s Main Street’s turn to drive investment, and it’s Main Street’s turn to restore the American Dream,” he said.
Trump’s imposition of a higher tariffs has fueled the biggest four-day rout for stocks since the onset of the pandemic in 2020. The S&P 500 is nearly 19% off its record high from February, inches away from dipping into a bear market, or a 20% decline from its peak. While the wealthy do own equities in greater numbers, Main Street’s ownership has increased because of 401(k) prevalance. Also, the stock market can dictate business confidence that impacts small businesses.
Bessent, a hedge fund veteran, founded investment firm Key Square Capital Management after working with George Soros for years. He has become the main economic spokesman for Trump’s agenda of tax cuts, deregulation and trade rebalancing.
“We want to de-leverage the government sector, re-leverage the private sector …. we can’t do it all at once, or that will cause a recession,” Bessent said. “What will keep us from having a recession is making sure that the tax bill doesn’t expire, adding back 100% depreciation and then adding some of President Trump’s agenda — No tax on tips, no tax on Social Security, no tax on overtime.”
Recession fears have been rising as the Trump tariffs spur uncertainty about how far the trade war will escalate. JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon said Wednesday he sees the U.S. economy likely headed to recession because of the trade battle.
