Bessent’s political turn in GOP speech tests his bond-market credibility

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's push to calm the bond market is colliding with a more political role, as his planned Republican convention speech raises questions about the credibility he needs to manage U.S. debt markets. Bessent's prime-time speech at the Republicans' midterm convention in Dallas on Wednesday will mark the first time in 50 years that a sitting Treasury secretary has spoken at a national political convention. The Dallas meeting is the first time the GOP has held a midterm convention. But the principles that have kept Treasury secretaries off the national convention stage since Treasury Secretary William E. Simon spoke at the Republican National Convention in 1976 are the same. "Treasury generally doesn't have a tremendous power but for the market credibility of the Treasury secretary," said Stephen Myrow, managing partner of Beacon Policy Advisors, and a former advisor to Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson. The Treasury Department can't print money, unlike the Federal Reserve. Bessent is the last government official due to speak before Trump, sandwiched between U.S. House candidates from Arizona and Michigan and a woman billed on the convention agenda as an "everyday American, working mother and economic policy advocate." His speech will come against the backdrop of the Treasury Department on Wednesday saying it would buy back as much as $6 billion in long-term treasury debt this week, with a cap of at least $4 billion in operations later this year. The department began the buyback program in 2024 to solve a well-documented problem where trading can be thin for some long-term debt. But the 64-year-old former hedge fund trader has described those operations in broader terms. There was a "fever that was building," in the markets, Bessent said at an event Tuesday organized by conservative news organization Breitbart. He said he acted to stem that. That intervention worked at first after Bessent announced enhanced buybacks on Aug. 19. The news, which prompted Treasury yields to fall, came after days of headlines worrying about a global sell-off in government bonds. But the effect was short-lived. Yields on long-term Treasury debt rose Wednesday after the department disclosed the size of the buybacks, which had been anticipated. The 10-year Treasury note yielded 4.84% mid-afternoon Wednesday, higher than any point of Trump's term. Higher yields on Treasury debt can help savers who can earn income from holding debt, but it can squeeze borrowers who face higher costs for new mortgages and auto loans. The Treasury secretary's role in helping to manage the vast, vital market for government debt makes the position particularly sensitive within the Cabinet. The Treasury secretary has played a critical role in stabilizing the economy during market crises, such as the 2007-2008 financial crisis or the 2020 pandemic. Although all Cabinet officials are political actors to a degree — they report to and are appointed by the elected president — some Treasury secretaries have been careful to avoid overt politics. "I was never asked to speak at an explicitly political event and was careful not to do so to avoid violating the Hatch Act," former Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said, referring to the law that limits the political activities of most executive branch employees. She served under President Joe Biden until Trump took office in 2025. The 1939 law puts some restrictions on certain executive branch officials' engagement in partisan politics, but political activity is permissible in some cases so long as officials don't use their official title or public resources. "Other Biden appointees did speak at political events observing these rules," Yellen said. Other Treasury secretaries have been involved in political conventions. Treasury Secretary James Baker appeared in a video at the 1988 Republican National Convention. He resigned effective that day to run George W. Bush's presidential campaign. Robert Rubin spoke at the 2000 Democratic convention, a year after he stepped down as Bill Clinton's Treasury secretary. Bessent has been aggressive in using his public profile to pursue the administration's political adversaries. "I say sometimes I feel like an emergency room doctor," Bessent said at the Breitbart event Tuesday. "The Biden economy just was like American people got hit by a truck." But workers are doing much better under Trump, Bessent said. The bottom 25% of earners has seen greater wage gains than the top 25%, he said. The Treasury Department didn't respond to requests for comment about the political nature of Bessent's speech Thursday. He has waved off questions about his political ambitions beyond his current job. Bessent is from South Carolina, home of the late Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham. Bessent told students at Southern Methodist University on Tuesday that he had fielded calls in the wake of Graham's sudden death in July. "They said, 'Oh, you should run for his seat,' and I said, 'you know what, I have one very demanding boss right now. I do not need 5.5 million South Carolinians as boss,'" Bessent said. Bessent isn't a natural orator. His delivery is sometimes considered awkward, and he tends to fall into financial jargon. And yet Bessent has risen to the top of an administration where the president is constantly assessing his underlings for their loyalty and the aggression of their defense of his policies, whatever they may be. "We don't have a typical, traditional president. So we wouldn't expect to have a traditional Treasury secretary," Myrow said. But if the markets don't trust Bessent, perhaps because they see him as putting politics first, Bessent could be stuck in a downward spiral of escalating demands from the president and weakening effectiveness, Myrow said. "The real value Bessent has for Trump is his credibility in the market," Myrow said. "If he ends up sufficiently losing market credibility, he's burning up the value he provides to Trump and the country." — Steve Liesman contributed to this report.