U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent attends a House Financial Services Committee hearing on the state of the international financial system, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., September 15, 2026. REUTERS/Annabelle Gordon
President Donald Trump's Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, made an admission during congressional questioning that caused complete shock on social media.
The admission came when Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) was grilling him about the U.S. acquisition of assets in Venezuela following the capture of longtime strongman leader Nicolas Maduro — an arrangement which, Bessent conceded, involved a lot more than just oil, and in a way that the U.S. government isn't even fully tracking.
“President Trump said … we’re taking in a lot of money, billions of dollars from Venezuela," said Casten. "He seemed to imply that we, the U.S. people, are taking in money to offset those costs. That would suggest flows to U.S. persons.”
Bessent agreed, saying, “This is one of the largest assets to ever go on the U.S. balance sheet.” But when Casten followed up, “You can't testify as we sit here whether or not those are flowing to U.S. persons?” Bessent replied, “No.”
That admission astonished commenters on social media.
"...?" posted former GOP insider Tim Miller.
"This is actually insane," wrote Sam Stein of The Bulwark. "We're taking over more Venezuelan assets than their oil, but we can't identify where the money is going and who it is going to? Seems like something we should look into."
"Jail," wrote talk radio host Brian Beutler.
"This is a big, big deal......looting another country on multiple fronts, where is the money going......?" wrote former prosecutor and Democratic strategist David Doak.