Post from suspended X account falsely attributed to Treasury secretary | Fact check

The claim: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent posted about ‘eliminating income taxes’

A Jan. 27 Threads post (direct link, archive link) appears to show an X post from Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent.

“As Treasury Secretary, I’m committed to eliminating income taxes, replacing them with a fair consumption tax, and adopting a gold-backed currency,” reads Bessent’s purported post. “We’ll erase debt, restore financial privacy, and unlock new technologies for a prosperous future. The golden age starts now.”

The Threads post was liked more than 800 times in 11 days. Similar posts were shared on Facebook and X.

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Our rating: False

There is no evidence Bessent made the X post attributed to him. The X account shown has been suspended, and there are no credible news reports that he proposed eliminating income taxes.

No evidence Bessent proposed getting rid of income taxes

Bessent became President Donald Trump’s Treasury secretary when he was confirmed by the Senate on Jan. 27, making the longtime hedge fund manager the head of the department responsible for managing the country’s finances.

There is no evidence, though, that Bessent has posted anything about “eliminating income taxes,” as the post claims.

The account shown in the image, @Scott_Bessent, had been suspended on X as of Feb. 7 for violating the platform’s rules, which prohibit users from impersonating “other identities of individuals, groups, or organizations to deceive others.”

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Nothing similar to Bessent’s supposed post appears in any recent statements on the Treasury’s website or verified social media accounts. No credible news reports support the post’s claim that Bessent has proposed replacing income taxes with a fair consumption tax.

Bessent didn’t say anything about eliminating income taxes during his Jan. 16 confirmation hearing, according to a transcript.

In 2023, some House Republicans proposed legislation that would have abolished the Internal Revenue Service and replaced income taxes – along with payroll taxes and estate or gift taxes – with a national sales tax, as USA TODAY previously reported.

The country’s first income tax was signed into law in 1862 by President Abraham Lincoln to help pay for Civil War expenses. But it wasn’t until 1913 that the states ratified the 16th Amendment, giving Congress the right to impose a federal income tax.

The social media user who shared the post could not be reached for comment.

PolitiFact also debunked the claim.

Our fact-check sources

• @Scott_Bessent, accessed Feb. 7, X profile
• Treasury Department, accessed Feb. 7, Press Releases
• C-SPAN, Jan. 16, Treasury Secretary Nominee Scott Bessent Testifies at Confirmation Hearing
• Rev, accessed Feb. 7, Scott Bessent Confirmation Hearing

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