Congressional Oversight and Conduct

Treasury Secretary Bessent’s Capitol Hill testimony devolved into insults and shouting matches as Democratic lawmakers pressed him on cost-of-living and inflation worries and potential conflicts of interest tied to the Trump-linked crypto firm World Liberty Financial. Exchanges grew heated — Rep. Maxine Waters demanded whether he’d be a “voice of reason” on Trump tariffs and snapped “Can you shut him up?” when he talked past her, while Rep. Gregory Meeks sparred with Bessent over whether Treasury would pause or scrutinize any OCC licensing related to World Liberty, with Bessent refusing to commit and pivoting to Meeks’ past trip to Venezuela.