Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) in a tense scene Wednesday on Capitol Hill over documents that appeared to show the senator’s son met with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein in 2016.Bessent, testifying before the Senate Finance Committee, clashed with Wyden, who is the committee’s ranking member, early on in the hearing. During his opening statement, Wyden railed against the Treasury Department under Bessent and accused him of being involved in preventing transparency regarding Epstein.
Bessent responded to Wyden at the tail end of his own opening remarks.
“Sen. Wyden has mendaciously slandered the Treasury building in an attempt to cover up his son having an investment meeting with Jeffrey Epstein to ask for funding,” Bessent said.
Wyden shot back.
“Let’s be clear here, nobody is interested in the ramblings of a capo in the most corrupt regime in American history,” Wyden responded, referencing a caporegime, which is a leadership position within the Mafia hierarchy.
