Getty ImagesDonald Trump has nominated Scott Bessent to lead the US Treasury Department, a post with wide oversight of tax policy, public debt, international finance and sanctions. The selection ends what has proven to be one of the more protracted decisions for the president-elect as he assembles his team for a second term.Bessent, a Wall Street financier who once worked for George Soros, was an early backer of Trump’s 2024 bid and brings a relatively conventional resume to the role.The 62-year-old’s nomination on Friday evening kicked-off a series of cabinet announcements and White House appointments that leaves Trump’s top team almost complete ahead of his return to the presidency in January.”Scott is widely respected as one of the World’s foremost International Investors and Geopolitical and Economic Strategists,” Trump said in his announcement on Truth Social.”[He] has long been a strong advocate of the America First Agenda,” he said, adding that Bessent would “support my Policies that will drive US Competitiveness, and stop unfair Trade imbalances.”On the campaign trail, Bessent told voters that Trump would usher in a “new golden age with de-regulation, low-cost energy, [and] low taxes”.A Friday flurryTrump also nominated Republican Congresswoman Lori Chavez-DeRemer for US Labor Secretary on Friday, saying she would help to “grow wages and improve working conditions [and] bring back our manufacturing jobs”.The representative from Oregon, 56, won strong trade union support but narrowly lost her bid for re-election earlier this month, meaning her nomination will not affect the Republican majority in the House come January.He then made another cabinet nomination moments later, announcing Scott Turner as his pick to lead the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The NFL veteran and motivational speaker previously served in the Texas House of Representatives.Getty ImagesTrump also announced a series of senior health picks, giving his backing to Fox News contributor Dr Janette Nesheiwat as Surgeon General and former Florida Congressman Dr Dave Weldon as Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).He selected Russell Vought as director of the US Office of Management and Budget, which helps decide policy priorities and how they should be funded.Vought, who played a major role in Project 2025 – a “wish list” for a second Trump presidency by the conservative Heritage Foundation – held the same position during Trump’s first term.The president-elect also announced White House roles for Alex Wong and Sebastian Gorka who also served during Trump’s first term.How will Bessent lead Treasury?If his nomination to lead the Treasury department is confirmed by the Senate, Bessent would almost immediately be plunged into the fight in Washington over extending the tax cuts from Trump’s first term.Trump has also called for controversial changes to trade policy, proposing sweeping tariffs on all goo …
