Bessent Comments On Narrative Over Trump Bill
Former Treasury Secretary and ex-Harvard president Larry Summers is facing heavy backlash after his inflammatory remarks targeting President Trump’s newly passed reconciliation package. In a dramatic and highly politicized statement, Summers claimed the bill would lead to the deaths of 100,000 people over ten years, painting a grim and speculative picture based on highly questionable assumptions.
Summers, who has long been a vocal critic of Trump-era economic policy, used the recent Texas flood tragedy as a platform to attack the legislation—an act that drew swift condemnation from current Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Speaking on weekend news programs and later posting on social media, Bessent criticized Summers for what he called “feckless and deeply offensive” rhetoric.
OMG - Larry Summer says the OBBB "will kill over 10 years, 100,000 people. That is 2,000 days of death like we’ve seen in Texas this weekend. In my 70 years I’ve never been as embarrassed for my country on July 4th."
This is FEAR MONGERING like we've never seen.❌ pic.twitter.com/eLCOqk337F
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) July 7, 2025
“This is the kind of reckless hyperbole that erodes public trust and turns serious policy debate into political theater,” Bessent said. “To invoke a natural disaster to make unfounded projections about public health is not only irresponsible, it's cruel.”
Today, former Treasury Secretary @LHSummers showed why he was forced to step down as president of @Harvard: a lack of humanity and judgment. 1/4
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) July 7, 2025
At the center of Summers’ criticism is a claim that changes to Medicaid under the Trump-backed reconciliation plan will cause mass loss of coverage, supposedly resulting in tens of thousands of preventable deaths. However, Democratic critics have consistently failed to clarify who exactly would be losing coverage. Republican lawmakers argue that the projected reductions affect non-citizens and those currently enrolled under pandemic-era emergency expansions—not legal residents or American citizens.
This is not the first time Summers’ political commentary has stirred controversy. His abrupt resignation from Harvard’s presidency followed previous public missteps, and Bessent suggested that Summers’ current affiliations—both nonprofit and corporate—should reconsider their association with him unless he issues a public apology.
In a shockingly callous interview on @ThisWeekABC, Professor Summers proclaimed that the One Big, Beautiful Bill will cause “...2,000 days of death like we’ve seen in Texas this weekend.”
Using the horrifying situation in Texas for cheap political gain is unfathomable. 2/4
— Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (@SecScottBessent) July 7, 2025
“Turning human suffering into a political cudgel is indefensible,” Bessent added. “If Professor Summers is unwilling to retract his statements, institutions should follow Harvard’s example and reassess their relationships.”
So far, no organization linked to Summers has responded publicly to the growing calls for accountability.