President Trump just shut down the latest round of Washington speculation about Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
The rumor mill had Bessent preparing to leave Treasury for a major new role in the administration’s push to dominate artificial intelligence.
President Trump’s answer was blunt: “Just more Fake News!”
The president has made no secret of the scale of his AI plans. During his United Nations address this week, he said the federal government should start using the term “Super Intelligence” and vowed to keep the United States ahead of China.
The White House’s Rapid Response team shared the moment:
That speech followed President Trump’s announcement that he plans to form an AI Force and appoint a high-level adviser to help guide it.
The new position quickly set off a scramble in Washington.
Semafor reported Tuesday that Bessent had emerged as a leading contender, citing three people familiar with the discussions. The report stressed that President Trump had not made a final decision and could still select a different candidate.
Bessent was a believable name because he has already played a major role in the administration’s AI policy. His portfolio this week included direct talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng ahead of President Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Those discussions covered a potential U.S.-China notification mechanism for AI incidents that could affect national security. Bessent has also served as one of the administration’s most important voices on trade, technology competition, sanctions and the economic pressure points Washington can use against foreign adversaries.
The report described a plausible expansion of Bessent’s influence, not an announced appointment. President Trump’s Friday statement closed the gap between those two very different things.
Those discussions were part of a much larger White House summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping this week:
TRUMP SALUDA MIENTRAS LOS B-1 SOBREVUELAN EN RECIBIMIENTO AL PRESIDENTE XI
Donald Trump presenta sus saludos mientras se interpreta el himno nacional de Estados Unidos, The Star-Spangled Banner, y bombarderos B-1 sobrevuelan el lugar durante el recibimiento al presidente Xi… pic.twitter.com/Cvt7uZmBI6
— Maibort Petit (@maibortpetit) September 24, 2026
But Bessent was already pumping the brakes on the speculation.
Bessent had already said Wednesday that he would continue contributing to the administration’s AI work while adding that there is only one AI czar: President Trump.
President Trump made the decision unmistakable Friday.
Trending Politics reports that the president said Bessent does not want the new position and is doing such a strong job at Treasury that Trump wants to keep him there.
President Trump asked why he would make such a change and dismissed the reporting as “Fake News.” He did not identify another candidate for the new technology post.
The statement settles the immediate question about Bessent’s job, but it does not remove him from the administration’s AI strategy. Bessent will keep contributing to that work from Treasury, where the economic contest with China already runs through his office.
The Treasury secretary has become one of President Trump’s most important negotiators. His department touches tariffs, financial sanctions, trade enforcement, critical technology and the stability of markets that can move on a single signal from Washington.
Keeping Bessent at Treasury preserves that continuity while allowing President Trump to choose a separate adviser for the AI Force.
This week, Bessent was still publicly focused on the economic portfolio President Trump handed him:
The Treasury Department describes Bessent’s job as promoting a strong and stable economy while protecting the nation’s financial system and national security. In the Trump administration, that mission now reaches directly into tariff negotiations, strategic technology, sanctions and the race with China.
Axios reported that Bessent proposed a U.S.-China notification mechanism for AI incidents with national-security consequences. The channel would give the world’s two leading AI powers a way to communicate when a dangerous event crosses borders or creates the risk of military miscalculation.
Bessent said greater transparency between the United States and China is important in the same way it is for other cross-border activity. The proposal emerged from talks with Vice Premier He ahead of the Trump-Xi summit, where AI joined trade, rare earths and national security on the agenda.
The administration has not backed away from the race to beat China. President Trump has repeatedly warned that broad restrictions could hand Beijing an advantage, while Bessent’s proposal addresses the narrower danger that a serious automated or cyber incident could be mistaken for an attack.
That record explains why Bessent’s name surfaced in the first place. He is already working at the intersection of economic power, technology and national security.
President Trump, however, is keeping the roles separate.
Bessent stays at Treasury. The search for the new “Super Intelligence” czar moves on.
This is a Guest Post from our friends over at WLTReport. View the original article here.
The post ‘JUST MORE FAKE NEWS’: President Trump Sets Record Straight On Scott Bessent’s Future appeared first on 100PercentFedUp.com.
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[H/T 100PercentFedUp]
