At a hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means on the 4th, U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent stated, "The United States possesses five areas that China would envy—its military, economic system, strong dollar, innovation capacity, and energy strength."
This was first and foremost a display of strategic confidence within an electoral context, aiming to bolster public confidence amid weak domestic economic data and persistently high inflation by highlighting America’s structural advantages, thereby garnering support for its policies.
More fundamentally, these remarks constituted a 'confidence appeal' and 'campaign mobilization' designed to soothe public sentiment and solidify the political base.
Military: Providing justification for Trump's potential military action against Iran, while pledging deterrence against China.
Economic System: Defending tax-cutting policies, claiming they have triggered a "historic investment boom."
Dollar Strength: Assuring global markets of the enduring dominance of the U.S. dollar, thus stabilizing the U.S. bond market and maintaining global financial hegemony.
Innovation: Emphasizing the competitive edge of private-sector innovation (such as Anthropic) to signal vigilance toward China’s technological rise and determination to compete.
Energy: Attributing soaring energy prices to a "one-time shock," promising price declines in the future, while asserting that current policies will enhance energy independence.
The fundamental purpose behind Bessent’s remarks is to compel voters to weigh "economic hardship" against "national strength." While appearing to list objective facts, he is actually making a high-risk political bet: convincing anxious voters that today’s economic pain is an unavoidable cost of preserving America’s global leadership.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1867162779245660/
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