Camerawoman Captures Scott Bessent's Texts, Exposing White House Panic

[erronis]

https://newrepublic.com/post/201064/donald-trump-scott-bessent-texts-argentina-china-trade-panic

Members of Donald Trump’s administration are scrambling to right their ship, after the president’s tariffs sent a major foreign trading partner into the arms of Argentina, which just received a massive bailout from the U.S. government.

Bunch of rank amateur criminals.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was spotted at the United Nations General Assembly last week reading a panicked message from “BR,” who some have determined to be Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. The message linked to the X account of Ben Scholl, a midwestern grain trader who has sounded the alarm on Washington’s newly-tossed lifeline to Buenos Aires.

“Just a heads up. I am getting more intel, but this is highly unfortunate. We bailed out Argentina yesterday and in return, Argentina removed their export tariffs on grains, reducing their price to China at a time when we would normally be selling to China,” the message read.

“Soy prices are dropping further because of it. This gives China more leverage on us,” the message continued, with Rollins adding: “On a plane but scott I can call you when I land.”

The photograph, taken by photojournalist Angelina Katsanis for the Associated Press, has already circulated through Argentine news.

. . .

[Tetrachloride]

1. Agriculture wars

the math is chaotic

[Prairie Gates]

2. China playing the idiot MAGAs like fiddles

They don't know whether to shit or go sale.

[MLWR]

18. They're playing TACO like fiddles too.

[vapor2]

3. They will bankrupt our country

[IronLionZion]

12. Big corporations love when small family farms go bankrupt

they buy up the land real cheap. MAGA!

[Darkstar53142]

28. That's what makes the overwhelming rural support for maga so astounding...

...an entire group of people so gaslit into "owning the libs" that they'll vote for their livelihood to be destroyed.

[ProfessorGAC]

35. While Likely Correct...

...Ag giants, in 2024, supplied around half of all $12.6 billion of soybeans sold to China.
So, big Ag is getting hit by this dumb plan, too.

[BlueWaveNeverEnd]

4. Trump will fire "BR"

[3Hotdogs]

11. Nah. Trump is loyal.

If he didn't fire War Secretary Hogsbreath...

[iemanja]

5. What do they expect?

F'ing morons.

[JohnnyRingo]

6. Actually, isn't that like reading someone else's mail?

I know nothing about to law on texts and email, but if it's in a physical mailbox instead of a virtual one, there'd be trouble

[chia]

7. He's in a public place. He should've protected his screen.

[Teacher of the Year]

25. I'm kind of scared to enlarge the screen to see what app they are using...

TWO US Cabinet Members texting. Wouldn't that need to be on a secure server? Or something besides...well, THIS.

[JohnnyRingo]

30. I suppose, but looking over someone's shoulder to read their phone....

... has to be a gray area. I wouldn't want to get caught doing it to a stranger.

[Torchlight]

31. Good thing it wasn't a stranger.

but rather the Treasury Secretary, whose messages are newsworthy and affect our daily lives.

[JohnnyRingo]

36. This is true, but not to put too fine a point on it....

I have a congressman and I think it would be an invasion of his privacy to stand behind him and read his texts. I've seen close up pix of politicians who were inadvertently displaying their screens or notes, but it's the over the shoulder part that bothers me this time.

It's not worth arguing so you can have the last word on the matter.

[GopherGal]

32. Communication between two government officials

apparently regarding official business. Sounds like something that should belong to the American public anyway. (And be backed up for eventual archival storage, which these guys probably routlnely disregard.)

[onenote]

8. If you were reading a handwritten letter in a public place, you have no expectation of privacy.

Same with email, texts, etc.

[BaronChocula]

9. She's really up on the latest news

from two months ago.

[IronLionZion]

10. Isn't Javier Milei a big libertarian wielding the chainsaw to slash bureacracy?

Why would he need a socialist bailout from US taxpayers? Is it because conservative policies turned out to be BS?

[Aussie105]

22. Please note . . .

there is no chain on that saw.

Going to make a lot of noise, but not much else.

[mjvpi]

13. I don't know when soybeans are sold, but Argentina's season's are opposite to ours.

Are they dried, then sold? If so ths makes sense.

[erronis]

14. Yes, I think all major shipments of soybeans are sold as dried; or as products

https://www.cargohandbook.com/Soybeans

Long-haul shipments from the US to overseas markets would not be favorable to shipping fresh soybeans.

[progressoid]

16. Yes, picked dry and sold.

But not necessarily sold the same year they are harvested. Some farmers will sell theirs immediately after harvest (if they are contracted or have a good price), but many store them while they wait for a better price. Depending on who you ask, it can be stored for up to two years.

Moisture content is closely monitored by farmers and storage facilities.

https://extension.umn.edu/soybean-harvest-and-storage/storing-drying-and-handling-wet-soybeans

[ananda]

15. Just sounds like everyday trumponomics to me...

stupid, batshit, and harmful to magats.

[rubbersole]

17. "Scott, math is hard." BR

[mercuryblues]

19. From the file of...

They did notsee that coming.

FFS.

[Hartpi978]

20. Bailout time

Another $30 billion dollar bailout for farmers solves everything. Right? That way they will continue to support Trump and MAGA.

[Aussie105]

21. Stupid people playing stupid games with smart people.

It never goes the way the stupid people expect.

[Ilsa]

23. But but but trump is a businessman!

He makes the best deals! (For China and Argentina.)

Once again, Donny gets played.

[travelingthrulife]

24. Scott Bessent likely will make a ton of money with Trump's farmer bailout.

He rents acreage worth millions to soybean farmers.

They are all crooks. Maybe even the soybean farmers since they knew he would be doing this and they expected to get a huge bailout.

[Aussie105]

27. But aren't bailouts socialism?

Something wrong there.

But maybe soybean farmers are thinking NOT growing crops will be more profitable?

And the DOGE team - no complaints for cash handouts to farmers?

The insanity is looking me in the face.

[not fooled]

29. Hasn't DOGE basically gone radio silent

now that they have stolen all of our data? Mission accomplished!

[erronis]

34. Socialism for the peons means putting your wealth in the common pot

where the capitalists/con-artists can easily steal it.

Or maybe that is also communism.

In the end, those that can will rob the poor. And don't give a fuck about walking through the eye in the needle.

[TygrBright]

26. When people vote for clueless numpties, this is inevitable. n/t

[Bristlecone]

33. How the F are these guys so careless with their phones.

Not even a privacy screen protector. Clowns one and all.


*yes, I realize that’s not the point, but man….