Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Thursday praised President Donald Trump as "solution-driven" and said the president was right to call out the United Nations' shortcomings on immigration, energy and the economy.
Scott Bessent Amplifies Praise On Trump’s Leadership
On X, Bessent wrote, "The United States of America is back. President Trump is solution-driven and will not accept the broken status quo of a failing government. He rightfully called out the UN's failures on immigration, energy, and the economy because that's what real leadership looks like."
In a Fox Business interview with Maria Bartiromo on Thursday morning, Bessent added that Trump "called out the rest of the world and our allies for their failures," and framed the message as an invitation, stating, "This is American leadership… come with us if you want to, we will lead… the U.S. is back."
Trump Questions U.N.'s Purpose
Trump blasted the U.N. in his General Assembly address on Tuesday, asking, "What is the purpose of the United Nations?" and saying the body is "not even coming close to living up" to its potential. As per an Associated Press account of his speech, he paired the criticism with boasts about foreign-policy achievements and a digression about not winning a decades-old bid to renovate U.N. headquarters, while claiming he has worked to end "seven wars."
Mishaps Spur Inquiry Threats And Funding Warnings
The UNGA appearance was marred by what Trump called a "triple sabotage" which included an escalator that stopped as he arrived, a teleprompter failure and audio problems. He urged the U.N. to open a formal inquiry on Wednesday.
U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz, speaking to Fox News in a separate interview, called the mishaps "unacceptable" and said U.S. funding should be withheld until reforms are made. U.N. officials later said a safety sensor, likely triggered by a U.S. videographer, halted the escalator and that the White House operated the teleprompter.
Bessent's comments came as allies and critics parsed Trump's agenda at Turtle Bay, from migration to climate and multilateralism. As per a Reuters report, Russia publicly backed Trump's call for a global ban on biological weapons, highlighting the speech's international ripple effects.
Photo Courtesy: Maxim Elramsisy On Shutterstock.com
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