The StoneZONE with Roger Stone - The Stone Zone ｜ 05-23-25

00:00:00.100 The Stone Zone on the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:00:05.980 Welcome. You are entering the Stone Zone and we have a really big shoe for you, as the late Ed Sullivan used to say.

00:00:14.940 I would call it one big, beautiful show. As a matter of fact, we're still celebrating the passage by the U.S. House of Representatives

00:00:21.760 of what is arguably the most significant piece of legislation that will ever be signed in the history of our country.

00:00:28.840 This bill is a massive across-the-board tax cut. No, it's not just tax cuts for the rich, as some would have you believe,

00:00:37.800 but an across-the-board tax cut which benefits every American because, as John F. Kennedy said, a rising tide lifts all boats.

00:00:47.840 This bill not only renews the tax cuts passed by President Donald Trump in his first term in January,

00:00:57.300 which, by the way, that was the largest tax cut in history prior to the one passed by the House yesterday.

00:01:04.520 But it also provides no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, tax deductions when you purchase an American-made car or truck,

00:01:15.940 along with funding for stronger border security, pay raises for our ICE and Border Patrol agents,

00:01:23.260 funding for the Golden Dome. We used to call it the Strategic Defense Initiative.

00:01:28.820 It's an idea that has come a long way since first proposed by President Ronald Reagan

00:01:33.420 and could protect America from incoming ICBM missiles, just as this technology currently protects Israel.

00:01:42.440 There are also savings accounts in there for newborn babies and much, much more.

00:01:47.580 There's a lot of disinformation about the big, beautiful bill.

00:01:51.680 So Secretary of the Treasury Scott Besson is going to join us shortly to explain the implications

00:01:58.020 of the passage of the new budget reconciliation bill.

00:02:01.980 Also to give us his firsthand report on the status of the Liberation Day tariff negotiations

00:02:09.620 in which he has been a leader in terms of implementing President Trump's strategy.

00:02:15.440 So you're not going to want to miss our upcoming interview with Secretary of Defense Scott Besson.

00:02:21.660 I think he may be the greatest Secretary of Defense since Alexander Hamilton.

00:02:27.340 And, well, we all know he founded the New York Post.

00:02:31.000 Meanwhile, for those who said that Trump's economic policies would be a disaster,

00:02:36.540 gas prices heading into Memorial Day weekend will hit a four-year low

00:02:42.140 as millions of Americans prepare to hit the road for the holidays.

00:02:45.860 When adjusting for inflation, the average U.S. retail gasoline price going down before Memorial Day weekend

00:02:54.180 are 14% lower than last year, in large part because of falling crude oil prices,

00:03:00.960 according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

00:03:03.940 So on Monday, for example, the retail price of regular-grade gasoline in the United States

00:03:10.240 averaged $3.17 per gallon.

00:03:13.940 That's 11% lower than it was on the same date one year ago.

00:03:19.780 This is a massive change, as for the last 10 years,

00:03:23.580 retail gasoline prices increased 19%, or $0.49 per gallon, on average,

00:03:29.540 from January to May, excluding the year 2020.

00:03:33.940 Gas prices typically increase heading into the spring and summer months

00:03:38.660 due to factors such as increased demand for summer travel

00:03:42.120 and refineries switching over to summer gasoline blends,

00:03:46.600 which are, frankly, more expensive to refine and produce.

00:03:51.320 I saw that Lippo Oil Associates President Andy Lippo said that gas prices are expected to remain

00:03:57.460 between $3.25 and $3.50 per gallon this summer, which is well, well below last year's levels.

00:04:06.640 He attributed this drop in costs, in part, to tariffs that are contributing to putting pressure on oil prices

00:04:14.380 on the expectations of slower growth, coupled with optimism from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries,

00:04:24.060 also known as OPEC, and its allies.

00:04:27.200 That group estimates that the global oil demand will grow by 1.3 million barrels per day in both 2025 and 2026.

00:04:38.160 What was it President Trump said?

00:04:40.860 Drill, baby, drill. 1.00

00:04:42.940 And that is exactly what we're doing.

00:04:44.880 See, Donald Trump has always understood that lower energy prices were the cornerstone to building a boom economy.

00:04:51.780 Some of his critics try to pretend that tariffs are his only economic strategy.

00:04:56.920 That is far from the truth as we will hear from Secretary of the Treasury Scott Besson,

00:05:02.500 who joins us shortly here in the Stone Zone.

00:05:05.400 Meanwhile, OPEC, that's the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries,

00:05:10.500 has also announced a 41,000, 41, pardon me, 411,000 barrel per day oil production increase for June

00:05:21.140 after increasing production in both April and May.

00:05:25.360 I read where Phil Flynn, Futures Group senior analyst, says that OPEC wants to keep President Trump happy,

00:05:32.940 and they're clearly doing that, and the result is lower gas prices for every American consumer.

00:05:41.120 Promises made, promises kept.

00:05:44.420 Meanwhile, the farmers are also happy.

00:05:47.000 The American Farm Bureau Federation President, Zippy Duval, I love any guy named Zippy,

00:05:52.140 said yesterday that the House passage of the Reconciliation Bill was great for America's farmers.

00:05:58.880 The Farm Bureau said they applaud the House passage of H.R. 1,

00:06:02.980 which modernizes Farm Bill programs and extends and improves critical tax provisions

00:06:08.480 that benefit America's small farmers and ranchers.

00:06:11.720 Updated reference prices will provide more certainty for farmers struggling through tough economic times,

00:06:19.140 making business tax deductions permanent,

00:06:22.060 and continuing current estate tax exemptions will ensure that thousands of farmers

00:06:28.300 will be able to pass their farms on to the next generation.

00:06:32.040 We urge the Senate to work together and swiftly pass this legislation

00:06:36.800 to deliver the much-needed relief to America's farmers and ranchers.

00:06:42.440 Happy farmers means more food production.

00:06:46.400 More food production, of course, means lower food prices.

00:06:50.740 This one big, beautiful bill, as President Trump has called it, passed yesterday,

00:06:54.680 and, as he said, it is probably the most significant piece of legislation that we will ever see signed.

00:07:02.120 Yet his critics are still out there with the same old disinformation.

00:07:06.280 I saw Robert Reich, who was the Labor Secretary under President Bill Clinton.

00:07:12.320 I actually went to high school with him, John Jay High School in Katona, New York.

00:07:16.640 He was wrong then. He is wrong now.

00:07:19.600 He claims that the massive deficits that the country has and inflation,

00:07:25.940 which is, frankly, manageably low, are created by cutting taxes on the working families of America.

00:07:34.460 But the truth is that every time in our history that we have cut taxes across the board,

00:07:40.560 whether it was under President Donald Trump in his first term,

00:07:44.100 whether it was under President Ronald Reagan,

00:07:46.500 or whether it was under President John F. Kennedy,

00:07:50.000 there's been a sharp spike in government revenues.

00:07:53.660 No, inflation and the deficit are caused by profligate spending,

00:07:59.580 and we have to get spending under control.

00:08:02.640 This is one of the questions we're going to ask Secretary of the Treasury,

00:08:06.300 Scott Besant, when he joins us shortly here in the Stone Zone,

00:08:09.660 because getting spending under control is one of the three legs of the economic program

00:08:16.940 laid out by President Donald Trump.

00:08:20.100 Meanwhile, the president has yet again threatened a 25% tariff on iPhones

00:08:26.160 and a 50% tariff on European Union goods.

00:08:31.400 The president threatened to impose these fresh tariffs on both Apple and the EU.

00:08:36.220 On True Social, President Trump wrote,

00:08:39.080 The European Union, which was formed for the primary purpose of taking advantage of the United States on trade,

00:08:45.740 has been very difficult to deal with.

00:08:48.340 Their powerful trade barriers, their VAT taxes, their ridiculous corporate penalties,

00:08:54.260 their non-monetary trade barriers,

00:08:56.840 their monetary manipulations, which are both unfair and unjustified,

00:09:03.360 plus the lawsuits against many American companies and more,

00:09:07.180 have led to a trade deficit with the United States of more than $250 trillion a year,

00:09:15.140 a number which is totally and completely unacceptable.

00:09:18.500 Our discussions with them are going nowhere, unfortunately.

00:09:21.920 Therefore, I'm recommending a straight 50% tariff on the European Union,

00:09:26.880 starting on June 1st of this year.

00:09:29.820 There is no tariff if the product is built or manufactured in the United States.

00:09:34.460 Thank you very much for your attention to this matter, said the president.

00:09:38.800 Look, I've known Donald Trump for almost 50 years.

00:09:42.620 I don't think he's actually a lover of tariffs,

00:09:45.640 but he does understand that they are a cudgel that can be used to get our trading partners to reach agreement

00:09:53.820 so that we have free and fair trade deals that benefit both trading partners.

00:10:00.460 All the way back in the 80s, Donald Trump was one of the few voices who denounced the North American Trade Agreement,

00:10:08.160 or NAFTA, later the TPP, these one-size-fits-all trade agreements,

00:10:14.660 which don't necessarily work to the benefit of the United States.

00:10:18.940 As I think Secretary Bessett will tell you in our upcoming interview,

00:10:23.540 different countries have different interests.

00:10:25.780 Some countries are interested in importing cars.

00:10:28.020 Others are interested in providing wine.

00:10:30.560 Others are interested in reporting agricultural goods.

00:10:36.420 But the one-size-fits-all approach was rejected by Ross Perot,

00:10:42.360 but really rejected by Donald Trump as early as the 1980s.

00:10:46.960 And now you see Trump doing what he has long advocated,

00:10:51.140 individual tariff and trade negotiations with each one of our trading partners,

00:10:56.660 rather than this one-size-fits-all formula that was used by Barack Obama and Joe Biden.

00:11:04.920 Trump administration is already setting 25% tariff on the imports of steel, aluminum, and cars,

00:11:10.320 as well as a baseline 10% tariff on almost all countries with additional reciprocal tariffs,

00:11:17.620 making for a combined 20% in the case of the European Union.

00:11:23.080 Lined-up negotiations during the current 90-day pause may fail,

00:11:29.340 and that expires July 8th.

00:11:32.240 Unlike with Joe Biden, I think our European allies understand that Donald Trump means business,

00:11:39.500 and they no longer are sitting across the table from a patsy.

00:11:44.120 They're sitting across the table from the man who wrote the art of the deal,

00:11:49.760 perhaps the greatest businessman in American business or political history.

00:11:55.040 If you take Donald Trump seriously, he knows what he's doing.

00:11:58.720 We're already seeing the fruits of that.

00:12:01.620 You're going to want to stick with us here in the Stone Zone, 0.95

00:12:04.420 because coming up is our exclusive interview with Secretary Scott Besant,

00:12:09.080 Secretary of the Treasury.

00:12:11.420 He was known on Wall Street as one of the savviest traders.

00:12:16.880 He was regarded actually as the world's foremost macro hedge fund manager.

00:12:21.040 He's left all that behind to serve his country.

00:12:24.760 In my opinion, he is among the president's very best appointees.

00:12:28.980 He's also a great interview because he tells you the stone-cold truth.

00:12:34.800 So we have him coming up shortly.

00:12:37.000 Meantime, we're still celebrating the largest tax cut in American history,

00:12:41.680 and we're out there trying to extinguish a lot of the disinformation.

00:12:47.180 No, Donald Trump is not slashing Social Security benefits.

00:12:50.260 No, he is not cutting Medicaid benefits.

00:12:53.900 No, the big, beautiful bill passage is not going to cause a recession.

00:13:00.220 These are the same people who said, well, Donald Trump could never win.

00:13:04.880 They're the same people who lied us into war. 0.77

00:13:08.020 They're the same people who made up the Russian collusion hoax.

00:13:11.260 They're the same people who made up the Ukrainian impeachment hoax. 0.92

00:13:15.240 Those voices in the fake news media who are against anything Donald Trump is for.

00:13:23.400 Trump is proving that he delivers on what he says.

00:13:26.920 He says what he means.

00:13:28.740 And we're going to be talking to the Secretary of the Treasury about it

00:13:31.880 when we come right back into the Stone Zone minutes from now.

00:13:35.380 The Stone Zone on the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:13:40.740 This shrimp and coconut sauce is divine.

00:13:46.280 What's your secret?

00:13:47.280 Goya coconut milk.

00:13:48.400 How does it taste so good?

00:13:49.760 It's all in that real coconut flavor and that rich, creamy texture.

00:13:53.860 What about thickeners and added sugars?

00:13:56.080 None.

00:13:56.660 Just smooth, coconutty goodness.

00:13:59.140 What can I make with it?

00:14:00.200 From curries to sweet treats like coconut flan, the possibilities are endless.

00:14:05.660 Goya coconut milk.

00:14:06.860 Take your cooking to the next level.

00:14:08.300 No question about it.

00:14:09.560 Find it in the Goya section of your local grocery store.

00:14:11.860 If it's Goya, it has to be good.

00:14:17.200 The Stone Zone on the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:14:23.000 Welcome back.

00:14:24.200 You are back in the Stone Zone.

00:14:26.140 We're preparing to be joined by Secretary of the Treasury Scott Besson,

00:14:30.960 who's going to tell us about the status of the President's Liberation Day tariff negotiations.

00:14:36.560 He is fresh off talks with the Chinese.

00:14:40.320 I want to ask him about what kind of progress we're making there.

00:14:43.580 I also want to give him an opportunity to address the President's critics,

00:14:48.520 who I think misrepresent the many great ramifications of the big, beautiful bill.

00:14:54.660 So you're going to want to stick around for that.

00:14:57.640 Meanwhile, President Trump had a bold message for Apple CEO Tim Cook on Wednesday.

00:15:04.000 He said that bringing back manufacturing jobs in the United States is the cornerstone of his America First agenda.

00:15:12.040 And the President called on Cook last week in Qatar,

00:15:15.040 saying that he had a little problem with the tech giant using facilities in India to make iPhones for sale in the United States.

00:15:23.660 We're going to ask Scott Besson about this because he said that the President is trying to light a fire under the European Union

00:15:32.120 and the tech giant Apple to ensure that America is bringing production back to dominance for Apple.

00:15:41.260 I would hope that this would light a fire under the EU because, well, they have a collective action problem here.

00:15:47.920 It's 27 countries, but they're being represented by this one group in Brussels.

00:15:52.520 So some of the feedback that Scott Besson said he was getting from the underlying countries

00:15:58.420 don't even know that the EU is negotiating on their behalf.

00:16:03.000 There are 18 important trade deals that we have to do.

00:16:06.500 Besson is working, claiming his focus has largely been on Asia, but he has a big job.

00:16:12.820 We're going to have a chance to ask him about it coming up.

00:16:16.620 In the meantime, it is also very sad to hear that my good friend Dilbert cartoonist Scott Adams has announced that he has terminal cancer.

00:16:29.920 The cartoonist said that President Donald Trump personally reached out to him after he revealed his cancer diagnosis this past week.

00:16:38.760 Adams, who has appeared on this show, is a great guy, great patriot, very funny guy.

00:16:46.060 67 announced on his own live stream on Monday that he has metatastic prostate cancer,

00:16:52.820 the same time that type of cancer that former President Joe Biden claims he was recently diagnosed with.

00:17:00.100 I do have questions about that because we played an audio here in the Stone Zone two nights ago of Joe Biden saying in 2022 that he had cancer.

00:17:11.860 Yet the statement put out by his office claimed that he only learned that he had cancer last Thursday and announced it on Friday.

00:17:21.340 In any event, please don't touch that dial, because when we come back, Secretary of the Treasury Scott Besson is going to tell us how America's plan for a golden age under Donald Trump is coming.

00:17:35.660 An age, I think he's the one who coined that phrase, actually, an unprecedented age of peace, prosperity, security and justice.

00:17:43.420 We'll be right back with Secretary Scott Besson.

00:17:45.880 Please don't go away.

00:17:47.160 The Stone Zone on the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:17:57.520 The Stone Zone on the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:18:13.480 This is the Stone Zone.

00:18:15.700 Now, get him a zone.

00:18:18.060 It's the Stone Zone.

00:18:20.080 Here's Roger Stone.

00:18:23.060 Welcome back in the Stone Zone.

00:18:25.560 I'm joined now by the 79th Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, Scott Besson.

00:18:32.900 In his business career, Scott Besson was widely recognized as one of the world's foremost macro hedge fund managers.

00:18:40.760 He's given that up to serve the American people.

00:18:43.560 Scott Besson is a free thinker, libertarian, strong supporter of digital currency.

00:18:50.300 But above all, he is a Trump loyalist who is playing a key role in implementing the president's strategy for the golden age.

00:18:59.920 Scott Besson, welcome to the Stone Zone.

00:19:02.860 I'm Roger.

00:19:03.940 It's great to be on.

00:19:05.100 We're very honored to have you.

00:19:07.740 There's so much I want to ask you, but let's start here.

00:19:11.500 How do you see the implications for the passage of the new budget reconciliation bill, also known as the big, beautiful bill?

00:19:20.000 I think it may be.

00:19:20.880 I think it is the largest single tax cut in American history.

00:19:25.780 The president's critics keep pointing to, oh, this is going to balloon the deficit.

00:19:31.400 They don't understand economic growth.

00:19:33.620 Tell us the implications from your point of view.

00:19:35.520 Yeah, Roger, this one big, beautiful bill is the most important piece of legislation that's going to pass this year.

00:19:45.800 The president's economic agenda is the three-legged stool, its trade, its taxes, and its deregulation.

00:19:53.060 And all I hear as Treasury Secretary, all I hear from people who don't like the tariffs is uncertainty, uncertainty, uncertainty.

00:20:02.760 But then the same people who complain about uncertainty about the tariffs, they are trying to block this tax bill.

00:20:11.640 And I can tell you that the certainty that will come from this tax bill is the stimulus in and of itself.

00:20:17.680 And as you said, if you want to see a deficit blowout, don't pass this tax bill because the growth will collapse.

00:20:29.640 And this is the – we're making the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent.

00:20:39.820 We are putting in full expensing for equipment and machinery.

00:20:45.720 We're putting in full expensing for factory structures.

00:20:50.000 So not only is the U.S. the best place to have a factory, it's going to be the most tax-effective place to build one and furnish it out with equipment.

00:21:02.740 And then we're – this bill also contains the president's campaign promises of no tax on tips, no tax on Social Security,

00:21:11.580 no tax on overtime, and tax deductibility for auto loans for American-made cars.

00:21:18.580 And so, Roger, every Democrat who voted against this bill voted against a tax cut on Social Security, every single one of them.

00:21:31.720 Secretary, this morning I saw that you met with community bank leaders from both in and outside New York, as well as small business owners.

00:21:42.780 What did you hear from them?

00:21:44.360 And how is the Trump administration approaching small business overall?

00:21:48.660 One of the things I respect about you is you're a man who understands both Wall Street and Main Street.

00:21:53.360 I think this is particularly relevant at this time.

00:21:55.940 You know, Roger, when you're from Little River, South Carolina, and then move to Park Avenue, you understand Main Street and Wall Street.

00:22:08.460 And Wall Street's done great.

00:22:10.880 Now it's Main Street's turn to share in the prosperity.

00:22:14.220 Both can continue to – or both can do well.

00:22:17.340 It's not one or the other.

00:22:19.520 It's time for Main Street to play some catch-up.

00:22:22.220 And I think that one of the key elements for Main Street playing catch-up are these small community banks, small town banks, or small regional banks that have just been throttled in their growth prospects and inability to serve their communities by all this excess regulation that we've got coming out of the great financial crisis.

00:22:47.300 And I used to teach economic history, and the history is that when you have a crisis, there's always an overreaction.

00:22:57.200 And what these small bankers from mostly New York but some from around the country have told me is that this regulation is killing them.

00:23:06.760 They want to go out.

00:23:08.000 They want to help their communities.

00:23:09.480 70% of agricultural lending is from small banks, 40% of small business lending, and we've got to get these banks on their feet, healthy, and lending again.

00:23:27.080 And they're chomping at the bit to go.

00:23:29.600 They just need the right policies, which is what the Trump administration is trying to do.

00:23:35.700 The previous administration, as we know, was extraordinarily hostile to digital currency, cryptocurrency.

00:23:45.140 You have long been a proponent of it.

00:23:47.620 The president has embraced cryptocurrency as a vibrant industry in our country and an alternative monetary system.

00:23:56.540 Why is crypto, why is digital currency so important?

00:24:01.240 Well, Roger, it was even important as the Biden administration was trying to kill it.

00:24:10.580 What's important is for the U.S. to be the digital asset leader as we are the technological leader in every other aspect, whether it's AI or CRM solutions.

00:24:24.820 And it is important for the U.S. to be the leader because we will bring crypto and digital assets onshore.

00:24:34.220 We're going to have a thriving ecosystem here.

00:24:39.300 Everything from Bitcoin to stable coins and everything in between.

00:24:43.760 We're going to apply U.S. best regulatory practices, which is safe, sound, and smart.

00:24:52.320 And those will go out to the rest of the world.

00:24:55.280 These blowups that you see in the rest of the world, like Sam Bankman-Fried down in the Bahamas, that wouldn't have happened if we'd been onshore in the U.S.

00:25:05.440 And the U.S. was getting left behind.

00:25:10.600 And fortunately, these companies and the crypto entrepreneurs persevered through what could have been an extinction phase the past four years.

00:25:22.260 And now it is a pleasure to work with them and set up the proper regulatory framework for the U.S. to take the lead and push this important.

00:25:34.420 It's such an interesting combination to me as somebody who has studied fiscal policy and monetary policy.

00:25:43.560 And then you combine that with technology.

00:25:46.320 And the U.S. absolutely has to have the lead in this.

00:25:49.560 I think this is one of the most important and exciting things that the president is doing.

00:25:55.300 And it is you're absolutely right.

00:25:57.700 We need to be the world's leader.

00:26:00.540 You have in many ways been the point man for the Liberation Day tariff negotiations.

00:26:05.720 I saw that you were in Geneva meeting with the Chinese.

00:26:09.700 I saw some new announcements in that regard today.

00:26:13.380 I saw we had one down day in the market after the Liberation Day tariff negotiations.

00:26:18.560 And then the market bounced back nicely.

00:26:22.560 What is the latest in our tariff negotiations?

00:26:25.560 And how do you think we're doing?

00:26:28.600 I think we are doing very, very well.

00:26:33.460 And, Roger, you've known President Trump a lot longer than I have.

00:26:38.500 But I can tell you the joy of working with him is that he has created maximum leverage for his trade team by pushing so hard on both our allies, who have taken advantage of us,

00:26:58.620 and some of our adversaries or competitors or competitors, trade competitors, military competitors like China.

00:27:06.260 He's pushed hard on both of them to bring them to the table.

00:27:10.860 Your listeners should understand that there are 18 important trading relationships, and we are pushing those first.

00:27:21.560 We reached a deal very quickly with our oldest ally, the U.K.

00:27:27.600 It's going to mean between $5 billion, $10 billion of new trade for U.S. companies and ag products that is going to benefit the American people.

00:27:40.140 We went to, we had had an unfortunate escalatory phase with China, because on Liberation Day, we had said, do not escalate. 0.85

00:27:51.600 Come and bring us your offers.

00:27:54.860 And if you escalate, then we will raise the tariffs.

00:27:59.380 And the Chinese were the only ones who escalated. 1.00

00:28:01.140 We got up to, we were tariffing them at 145%.

00:28:05.980 They were tariffing us at 125%.

00:28:08.700 That created something akin to an embargo.

00:28:12.900 So we've got a 90-day pause here.

00:28:16.140 We both came down 115%.

00:28:18.660 We are at 30% for the 2025 tariffs.

00:28:24.160 They're at 10%.

00:28:25.500 But what's important to also remember, there were 20% tariffs on China from President Trump's first administration.

00:28:33.280 So we're really at 50%.

00:28:35.520 They're at 10%, which I think is a pretty good deal.

00:28:38.940 And they are negotiating hard, like they always do.

00:28:45.060 But we have good leverage over them.

00:28:47.480 Because the important thing to remember, Roger, is we are the deficit country.

00:28:52.940 That we have a trade deficit with China, the likes of which the world has never seemed. 0.86

00:29:00.160 So if trade gets cut off with them, then we lose some products.

00:29:08.540 They are the surplus country.

00:29:10.700 If our trade gets cut off with them, I think that if we hadn't done some kind of a deal,

00:29:17.700 they would have been laying off 10 or 20 million workers in the next few months.

00:29:22.940 I think I read someplace that your target for the 10-year Treasury note was in the range of 3.9%.

00:29:31.260 Do you still think that is a realistic yield?

00:29:35.380 And how do you feel about that today?

00:29:37.080 I do, because, again, Roger, the mainstream media is working with the Democrats to try to blow up the president's economic agenda.

00:29:52.460 And, you know, I feel like I am just dodging these crazy arrows that they're shooting all the time.

00:30:01.460 And the better the agenda gets, the crazier the things they say get.

00:30:07.220 So last week, bond yields went up.

00:30:12.240 And they said, oh, it was because of the president's tax bill.

00:30:16.180 And this is what's going to happen to deficits.

00:30:18.600 Well, you know what?

00:30:20.200 Bond yields went up around the world.

00:30:22.000 And the Japan yields went up much higher on a percentage basis.

00:30:29.020 Same in Germany.

00:30:30.600 And I think once we see that there is not an inflationary impulse from the tariffs, that energy prices continue coming down.

00:30:42.860 Cousin of mine called me.

00:30:44.360 It was in Daytona Beach.

00:30:45.920 And he said, great job, Mr. Secretary.

00:30:49.200 The gasoline is at $1.93 and diesel is at $3.

00:30:54.020 I said, well, you know, I wish I could take credit for it, but it's the market and it's the president's policy of energy independence.

00:31:03.480 And then other inflationary aspects, service inflation is coming down.

00:31:09.420 So I think once this kind of fear mongering that we're going to have this big wave of inflation comes down,

00:31:16.800 we will go back, Roger, to President Trump's, something similar to President Trump's first term,

00:31:25.220 where we had high levels of growth and it was non-inflationary.

00:31:30.180 And that is what creates the golden age.

00:31:33.660 Mr. Secretary, do you think that the chairman of the Federal Reserve, Jerome Powell, should cut interest rates?

00:31:40.020 You know, Roger, I made the pledge when I was confirmed that I wouldn't talk about the mistakes that the Fed is going to make.

00:31:53.940 I would only talk about all the ones that they have made.

00:31:57.140 But I do think that inflation is under control, but growth is good.

00:32:11.840 Growth continues to surprise all the pundits and the naysayers.

00:32:17.920 The jobs numbers are strong.

00:32:20.180 The economic numbers are good.

00:32:22.000 So we'll see what happens with rates.

00:32:27.660 Yeah, the president has said he believes that the Fed should cut rates.

00:32:31.240 So neither you nor I need to say it.

00:32:33.820 I think the president is absolutely right.

00:32:36.820 How close are we to a bank deregulation deal?

00:32:40.300 Would that not make it easier for banks to hold those Treasury notes we spoke of?

00:32:47.060 Yes, I think we will get something over the summer.

00:32:50.020 There's a technical term called the supplementary leverage ratio.

00:32:55.400 And, Roger, I began my career on Wall Street in 1984 as a banks and insurance analyst.

00:33:02.420 So I know how these beasts work from the inside and how bank regulation should work and could work.

00:33:11.840 And we are pushing to have this supplementary leverage ratio either reduced or removed, and it will allow banks to buy more Treasuries.

00:33:24.840 And it's the craziest thing you've ever seen.

00:33:27.100 They're going to take a big capital charge for holding a risk-free asset.

00:33:30.940 So during COVID crisis, there was an emergency lifting of the supplementary leverage ratio and caused rates to go down the tens of basis points.

00:33:46.860 So I think we could see anywhere from a 30 to 60 basis point decrease in rates based on this over time.

00:33:57.460 That's very, very exciting.

00:34:00.660 The president had announced the creation of the Sovereign Wealth Fund as the administration's priorities include paying down the national debt.

00:34:09.160 And for the time being, they have paused those plans.

00:34:12.020 There's plenty on the president's plate and on yours.

00:34:14.860 At what point will you feel comfortable about getting that fund up and running?

00:34:20.260 What types of investments do you think it would make?

00:34:24.280 Well, Roger, the president is moving at breakneck pace.

00:34:31.180 Nobody knows that better than you, but he's doing peace deals, trade deals, and tax deals.

00:34:38.100 And once those settle down, I would think that once we get over the hump and this deficit to GDP starts going down,

00:34:51.980 the total debt to GDP stabilizes and starts going down, and we are paying down debt,

00:34:59.820 then the Sovereign Wealth Fund will be on the table because I'd like to focus on this as a real legacy asset for the president

00:35:12.080 because what I have observed, and I'm a professor, what was a professor, too, of economic history is aside from my day job,

00:35:21.280 President Trump is the first president in centuries who wants to create assets for the American people

00:35:33.700 and not debt for the American people.

00:35:35.760 So I think if on the backside of the – excuse me – in 26, 27, 28, we can stand up the Sovereign Wealth Fund,

00:35:52.740 it would be a great lasting legacy for a president who wanted to create assets.

00:35:58.040 And I could see a range of things being in it.

00:36:02.840 The president created the idea of this Ukraine economic partnership.

00:36:10.560 He's the first president not just to write blank checks for military aid.

00:36:15.740 I could see that going into the Sovereign Fund and sitting on the balance sheet there

00:36:21.480 because, Roger, this isn't the kind of thing that's going to produce big gains for the American taxpayer over the next couple of years,

00:36:34.920 but if this terrible war in Ukraine is able to end, which the president is pushing hard for,

00:36:42.260 and Ukraine rebuilds successfully, and I think because of the partnership with the U.S.,

00:36:47.280 they would rebuild more successfully, this partnership could be worth in the hundreds of billions or over a trillion dollars.

00:36:56.580 If you're just tuning in, folks, we're talking to Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessett.

00:37:01.320 You're in the Stone Zone, and we'll be right back.

00:37:04.920 The Stone Zone.

00:37:06.300 On the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:37:15.280 The Stone Zone.

00:37:17.280 On the Red Apple Podcast Network.

00:37:21.280 We really just have enough time left for me to thank my guest, Scott Bessett,

00:37:26.200 the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States.

00:37:28.760 I've said it before.

00:37:29.720 I'll say it again.

00:37:30.760 Perhaps the greatest Secretary of the Treasury since Alexander Hamilton,

00:37:34.600 and the man who is helping President Donald Trump lead us to a golden age of peace,

00:37:40.060 prosperity, security, justice, and law and order.

00:37:43.340 Mr. Secretary, thank you so much for joining us today in the Stone Zone.

00:37:48.220 And for all of those out there in the Stone Zone, until we meet again, God bless you and Godspeed.

00:37:54.220 Thanks for listening to the Stone Zone with Roger Stone.

00:37:58.220 You can hear the Stone Zone with Roger Stone weeknights at 8 on 77 WABC.

00:38:04.320 If you like the podcast, share it with your friends and listen anytime at wabcradio.com

00:38:10.560 and download the WABC Radio app.

00:38:13.200 Hit that subscribe button on all major podcast platforms.

00:38:16.700 Plus, follow WABC on social, on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and X.

00:38:22.440 See you next time for a new episode so you never have to wonder.

00:38:26.100 What the heck is going on here?

The StoneZONE with Roger Stone - May 24, 2025

The Stone Zone ｜ 05-23-25

Episode Stats

Summary

Transcript