In a swirl of high-stakes diplomacy, economic maneuvering, and political drama, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has found himself at the center of several of the Trump administration’s most consequential decisions as summer draws to a close in Washington, D.C. From weighing new sanctions against Russia to defending the firing of a Federal Reserve governor, Bessent’s recent remarks and actions have illuminated the administration’s aggressive posture at home and abroad.
Speaking exclusively to Fox News at Martin’s Tavern in Washington, Bessent did not mince words when asked about the possibility of further sanctions against Russia. "I think everything's on the table," he declared. The comment came as Russian President Vladimir Putin continued a brutal bombing campaign in Ukraine, even after a much-publicized meeting with President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, on August 15, 2025. Instead of de-escalating, Putin’s forces intensified their attacks. On August 28, Russia unleashed a barrage of missiles and drones on Kyiv, killing at least 17 people, including four children between the ages of 2 and 17, and injuring 48 others, according to Kyiv city administration chief Tymur Tkachenko (Fox News Digital).
Experts cited by Fox News Digital suggested that Putin’s diplomatic overtures may be little more than a stalling tactic, buying time to further his military objectives while attempting to sidestep the secondary sanctions now under consideration by the Trump administration. Bessent confirmed that “with President Trump, all options are on the table, and I think we’ll be examining those very closely this week.”
Meanwhile, the administration’s foreign policy lens has widened to include India, as tensions simmer over New Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian oil. The White House views these transactions as indirectly financing Russia’s war effort in Ukraine. In response, the Trump administration has raised tariffs on Indian goods, a move Bessent explained as both a punitive measure and a reflection of slow progress in U.S.-India trade talks. On September 1, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Tianjin, China (Reuters). Bessent characterized the summit as “largely performative,” but did not hold back criticism: “The Indians have not been great actors in terms of buying Russian oil and then reselling it, financing the Russian war effort in Ukraine.”
Despite these tensions, Bessent expressed optimism about the long-term trajectory of U.S.-India relations, noting, “India is the most populous democracy in the world. Their values are much closer to ours and to China’s than to Russia’s.” The complexity of this trilateral relationship was on full display in Tianjin, as Modi, Putin, and Xi sought common ground amid diverging national interests.
Back on U.S. soil, Bessent’s Labor Day was anything but a holiday. He was spotted ordering food at McLean Family Restaurant in Virginia, where he fielded questions from Reuters about the Federal Reserve’s independence and the recent firing of Fed Governor Lisa Cook. Bessent was unequivocal: “The Fed should be independent. The Fed is independent, but I, I also think that they've made a lot of mistakes.”
President Trump’s move to fire Cook, the first Black woman to serve on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors, has sparked a firestorm of controversy. The dismissal followed allegations of mortgage fraud leveled by William Pulte, the Trump-appointed head of the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, who also referred the case to the Justice Department. Cook and her supporters argue that the allegations are a thinly veiled pretext to replace her with a Trump ally more amenable to the president’s economic agenda. Cook has filed suit against Trump and the Fed, claiming the president lacked the legal authority to remove her. The Justice Department, for its part, has not filed charges.
Bessent did not waver in his defense of the administration’s actions. “She hasn’t said she didn’t do it. She’s just saying the president can’t fire her. There’s a big difference,” he said. He also called for a swift Senate confirmation of Stephen Miran, the White House Council of Economic Advisers chairman, to temporarily replace Adriana Kugler, who resigned on August 1, 2025. “The Senate should act quickly to confirm Stephen Miran,” Bessent urged, underscoring the administration’s desire to maintain momentum on its economic policies.
Amid these domestic and international dramas, Bessent was quick to dismiss concerns that the Trump administration’s actions had rattled markets. “S&P’s at a new high and bond yields are fine. So we haven’t seen anything yet,” he told Reuters. This confidence comes despite months of criticism from Trump directed at the Fed and its chair, Jerome Powell, for not lowering interest rates, as well as the president’s recent complaints about a costly renovation of the Fed’s Washington headquarters.
Yet, not everyone is sanguine about the White House’s assertiveness toward the central bank. Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank, warned that Trump’s efforts to undermine the Fed’s independence could pose a “very serious danger” to the world economy. "If US monetary policy were no longer independent and instead dependent on the dictates of this or that person, then I believe that the effect on the balance of the American economy could – as a result of the effects this would have around the world – be very worrying, because it is the largest economy in the world," Lagarde told Reuters.
As the U.S. marked Labor Day, hundreds of "workers over billionaires" rallies were held nationwide, calling for stronger social safety nets and labor protections. The Trump administration, for its part, draped the Department of Labor with a massive banner reading “American Workers First,” even as critics charged that recent policies have favored corporate interests over those of average workers (The Guardian).
Elsewhere, President Trump announced he would award Rudy Giuliani the Presidential Medal of Freedom, just days after the former New York mayor was seriously injured in a car crash. In a separate development, Guatemala’s president said his country was prepared to receive about 150 unaccompanied children deported from the U.S. each week, following a federal judge’s order halting the removal of 10 Guatemalan minors on September 1.
From the corridors of power in Washington to the fraught diplomatic halls of Tianjin, the past week has showcased the Trump administration’s willingness to upend precedent and pursue its goals with a mix of confrontation, negotiation, and headline-grabbing decisions. Whether these moves will yield the desired results—or trigger new crises—remains to be seen, but there’s no doubt that Scott Bessent and his boss are keeping the world watching.
