Tempers Flare During SHOWDOWN on Capitol Hill (Video)

A fiery exchange erupted on Capitol Hill Wednesday when Rep. Maxine Waters clashed sharply with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on the state of the U.S. economy — at one point telling him to “shut up.”

The California Democrat accused President Donald Trump’s administration of fueling inflation through tariffs and argued that immigration enforcement policies were worsening housing affordability for working Americans.

“Will you be the voice of reason in the administration and urge Trump to stop waging a war on American consumers?” Waters demanded. “Yes or no?”

As Bessent began to respond by questioning her definition of inflation, Waters cut him off and repeated the question. The exchange quickly devolved into both speaking over one another, with Bessent claiming the previous Biden administration allowed between 10 and 20 million immigrants into the country, adding pressure to the housing market.

Waters then turned to committee chairman French Hill, asking, “Can you shut him up?” in an effort to regain control of her time.

“Can you maintain some level of dignity?” Bessent shot back.

Waters accused the Treasury secretary of eating into her allotted time, while Bessent pushed back on claims that tariffs are inherently inflationary. He denied authoring a letter criticizing tariffs and cited federal data to support his argument.

“According to the San Francisco Federal Reserve, with 150 years of data, tariffs do not cause inflation,” he said.

The hearing was convened to review an annual report from the Financial Stability Oversight Council, including discussions about systemic financial risks and the 2023 collapses of First Republic Bank, Signature Bank, and Silicon Valley Bank under the previous administration.

Tensions flared again later in the session when Rep. Greg Meeks confronted Bessent over what he described as conflicts of interest involving the Trump family.

“Stop covering for the president! Stop being his flunky!” Meeks shouted, accusing Bessent of ignoring concerns tied to the Trump family’s cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial, which Meeks claimed received foreign investment linked to the United Arab Emirates.

Meeks warned that such financial ties could pose national security risks if foreign-linked investors are pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into a company controlled by the president’s family while the administration conducts diplomacy with those same countries.

He pressed Bessent to commit to heightened scrutiny of any banking licenses or charters connected to the venture until Congress receives a full review of potential conflicts of interest.

Bessent responded that the oversight Meeks demanded was already being handled by an independent entity — before taking a sharp jab of his own, referencing Meeks’ 2006 trip to Venezuela, where he allegedly lobbied then-president Hugo Chávez on behalf of donors.