“If the Law Changes”: Bessent Reveals Treasury is Prepared in Advance for Trump Currency Bill | APT

Added: 2026-05-30

[00:00:00][laughter] >> I want to start with these Trump accounts. You know, there's a lot of people, a lot of working class Americans that maybe don't have the financial expertise when it comes to stock markets and investing in general.

[00:00:13]In what ways do you are you guys simplifying this for all those Americans so that it's not just for one class of people, but all Americans can can have it?

[00:00:21]>> Well, that's a great question because 38% of Americans have no exposure to equities. They don't share in the great innovation the machine that is the American economy or great capital markets as drives the our prosperity.

[00:00:38]So, uh if your child is born during President Trump's administration, Treasury puts in a thousand dollars as a seed investment.

[00:00:47]Uh we've also created six learning pods.

[00:00:50]So, you can go online to the app that went up today and learn. And I think that this is going to be I I've been a big proponent of financial literacy and I think this is going to be one of the greatest real-time financial literacy educations in history because it won't be uh you know, like there there's a street in New York called Wall Street. This is what I don't really understand what happens there. Uh American family's going to be able to look on their phone every day and see.

[00:01:20]And you know, I think it's going to drive people to try to understand what they've got here. I think I think we're going to create a a generation of shareholders. So, so uh Ed >> Mr. Secretary, um I guess first well, we're starting to see this disruption of the oil supply and through the Strait of Hormuz affect economic data. Um you know, first, is there a deal on the table uh for a 60-day ceasefire to continue that?

[00:01:45]And then second, um how fast could inflation then recede or retreat or is inflation sticky cuz the PCE was uh at a three-year high?

[00:01:54]>> Uh well, first first of all, PCE today month month was 0.2, which was we're we're looking at decimal points, but the estimate was 0.3. So, one month doesn't a trend make. And what we've seen is actually oil prices are down about 10% in May. There almost 2,000 ships waiting to come out of the Gulf, and I think the oil market is going to be very well supplied on the other side of this, and that we could see prices come down very quickly. We saw the UAE the leave OPEC. So, I I would expect on the other side of this that gasoline prices will follow >> Is there something on the table?

[00:02:33]>> Sorry.

[00:02:34]>> Is there an agreement with Iran on the table?

[00:02:36]>> Uh the the teams have been going back and forth, and President Trump has made it very clear. He talked about it at the cabinet meeting that he he has several red lines, and Iran has to turn over their highly enriched uranium. They cannot pursue a nuclear weapon, and the Strait of Hormuz Back to your question on energy. Has to free transit, navigation of the seas has to be free and open as it was before.

[00:03:03]So, he's not going to take a bad deal.

[00:03:05]He's got to make a great deal for the American people.

[00:03:10]So, Peter, I I >> Thank you, Dr. Benzel.

[00:03:13]>> Yep.

[00:03:14]>> Um how long until we see your signature next to President Trump's face on a $250 bill?

[00:03:23]>> Well, the again as Treasury Secretary, I I have two mandates for US currency. At present, the no living person can be on US currency, and the currency must say, "In God We Trust."

[00:03:37]So, right now there is proposed legislation that front of the house and front of the Senate to change the first requirement so that a living person Donald J. Trump could be on a $250 bill.

[00:03:50]So, it it it's all in the hands of the uh it's it's all in up on Capitol Hill.

[00:03:57]So, at Treasury we prepare things in advance. So, we have prepared in advance that if the legislation