Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, Unveils Team Trump’s Bold Economic Agenda on ‘Kudlow.’
Trump’s president-elect nominee for Treasury Secretary told senators during Thursday’s confirmation hearing that he will work to crack down on tax cheats, rich or not.
Scott Bessentthe Key Square Group executive who Trump nominated to serve as Treasury secretary testified before the Senate Finance Committee and was pressed about whether he would work to strengthen audits of wealthy taxpayers. If confirmed, Bessent would lead the Treasury Department, of which the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is a sub-agency.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, noted that while technological developments such as artificial intelligence (AI) can help with tax oversight, the agency will need resources it says have been lacking in the past and as a result hindered previous efforts to step up audits of wealthy taxpayers.
“What you’ve seen, because we don’t have the resources to go after rich tax cheats, people who use the Earned Income Tax Credit or anything like that — they’re the ones who get audits and stuff,” Wyden said. “And I want to see, in this position, somebody commit to making sure that we have the resources to hunt down wealthy tax cheats who have this unique type of system.”
TREASURY SECRETARY NOMINEE SCOTT BESSENT TO CALL FOR ACTION DURING HEARING: ‘GENERATION OPPORTUNITY’
Scott Bessent testifies during a Senate Finance Committee hearing Thursday in Washington, DC. (via Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc / Getty Images)
“And I would take your point that it’s certainly going to be a challenge in the years to come with AI and other technologies, but we’re still going to need resources,” Wyden added.
“If confirmed, I will get back to you with a plan to increase the collections,” Bessent replied.
That prompted Wyden to follow up with a question: “On rich tax cheats?”
“You seem to believe that the rich cheat more, but I think across the income spectrum,” Bessent said.
“You say the rich have this special repository, but if there’s some great mother vein out there, then if I figure out how to crack it—either through artificial intelligence or otherwise—I’ll promise to get back to you.”
TREASURY SECRETARY-NOMINATE SCOTT BESSENT’S ‘3-3-3’ PLAN: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Scott Bessent, founder and CEO of Key Square Group LP, is seen during an interview in Washington, DC on June 7, 2024. (Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Wyden noted that Trump’s commissioner of the tax administration from his first term, he testified that the agency needed additional multi-year funding because it “has gone above and beyond when it comes to auditing wealthy individuals and large corporations.”
“The position that I’ve put forward today is not just what I’m offering, but what the former Trump appointee said specifically is that the agency is overwhelmed when it comes to resources. You’ve indicated that you’re going to continue the discussion, that’s an important one,” Wyden told Bessent. .
