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.
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.
Last week, Bessent pledged that the United States was “ready to do what is needed within its mandate to support Argentina,” which was a “systemically important U.S. ally in Latin America.” He said that U.S. officials were in talks to establish a $20 billion swap line with Argentina’s Central Bank—an institution Argentine President Javier Milei once promised to abolish—and purchase secondary or primary government debt. Bessent even hinted at handouts from U.S. companies.
Scholl argued that this was a huge mistake. “China and Argentina work together for soybeans as Bessent offers to subsidize the Argentine economy,” Scholl wrote on X Tuesday. “They think you are stupid.”
China, the largest buyer of U.S. soybeans, has not purchased any American soybeans since May, pivoting to suppliers in Argentina and Brazil as Trump struggles to land an actual trade deal with Beijing. Even top Republicans have been forced to admit that Trump’s tariffs have created a squeeze for farmers, one that the president said could be offset with “millions” or “billions” of tariff revenue—he wasn’t actually sure.
“The U.S. trade war with China has dealt a huge blow to American soybean producers, since China paused soybean imports from the U.S.,” Rohit Chopra, former director of the Consumer Financial Protection Board, wrote on X Monday. “But this may not be temporary, as Argentina and other countries cut deals with China to cut America out of the business.”
“The Treasury Secretary should: (1) Immediately hit pause on this inappropriate bailout of Argentina that is further harming American farmers (2) Affix a privacy screen to his iPhone, available online and in stores for roughly $10,” Chopra wrote in a separate post.
The post Cameraman Captures Scott Bessent’s Texts, Exposing White House Panic appeared first on New Republic.
