Treasury Secretary Bessent torches MSNBC over Argentina ‘bailout’ claims

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent set the record straight when MSNBC claimed that the Trump administration is providing a "bailout" to Argentina.

'In most bailouts, you don’t make money. The US government made money.'

News broke in October that the Trump administration would implement a $20 billion currency swap with Argentina, which legacy media outlets have repeatedly described as a “bailout” for the Latin American country. Democrats criticized the plan, arguing that the administration had strayed from its America First agenda and failed to prioritize American farmers, citing trade negotiations with China that led to China temporarily suspending purchases of U.S. soybeans.

During a Friday morning interview on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” correspondent Jonathan Lemire asked Bessent, “How does a $20 billion bailout of Argentina help Americans?”

“Do you know what a swap line is?” Bessent replied to Lemire.

“It’s a currency swap, yes,” Lemire responded.

“Yes, but what is that?” Bessent asked.

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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

“You’re the treasury secretary,” Lemire stated.

“Yes, but why would you call it a bailout?” Bessent questioned. “In most bailouts, you don’t make money. The U.S. government made money. We used our financial balance sheet to stabilize the government, one of our great allies in Latin America, during an election.”

He reiterated that the U.S. would make money from the arrangement, adding that he “would rather use peace through economic strength than have to be shooting at narco boats coming offshore if the [Argentinian] government collapsed.” Bessent called the situation a “generational opportunity in Latin America to create allies.”

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Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

“By stabilizing the economy there and making a profit, then that’s a very good deal for the American people,” Bessent continued. “There’s a lot we could have been doing for the American farmers, but Democrats closed the government.”

He clarified that the arrangement with Argentina was a $20 billion credit line and that the U.S. has already made a profit on the swap line, which involved exchanging U.S. dollars for pesos.

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