Scott Bessent promises fiscal plan after congressional elections

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration would present a fiscal consolidation plan after the November midterm elections. RIA Novosti and Lenta.ru reported his remarks to Newsmax.

Bessent said he was developing the proposals with Donald Trump. Limits on government spending would be one element. He said the White House had already made progress in reducing the budget deficit and wanted to continue that work.

In Lenta.ru's account, Bessent compared a deficit of 6.7% of GDP under Joe Biden with about 5.7% under the current administration. He also acknowledged that the deficit had increased this year, attributing that chiefly to tariff refunds, the war in Iran and high interest rates.

Details of the proposed spending limits and their implementation timetable have not been disclosed. Preparing a plan does not itself reduce accumulated debt. A budget deficit measures the excess of spending over revenue during a particular period, while government debt represents accumulated obligations.