Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has made a simple promise with complicated arithmetic.
Appearing before both the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee, Bessent endorsed a bipartisan effort to reduce the federal deficit to 3% of gross domestic product (GDP) by the end of President Donald Trump's term.
According to The Center Square, Bessent told lawmakers the administration could achieve “something with a three in front of it,” framing deficit reduction as one reason he left a lucrative finance career to enter public service.
The problem is that Washington’s own numbers don’t support the pledge. The administration’s fiscal 2027 budget projects that deficits will remain above 5% of GDP through 2029.
Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office’s February outlook projects deficits will never fall below 5.6% of GDP over the next decade. Debt held by the public has already climbed to 101% of GDP, its highest level since World War II.
