Bessent Comments on Megaspeed Curbs, Welfare Remittances and AI in Separate Remarks

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Friday on CNBC's "Squawk Box" that Treasury and others in the Trump administration have long supported restrictions on Megaspeed, a company at the center of a scandal involving former Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang. He added that the Commerce Department is in charge and must be asked about its internal processes. In a Fox News interview, Bessent outlined a crackdown on federal benefits abuse in Minnesota, including IRS audits of some banks suspected of money laundering. He said anyone wiring money out through money service businesses would have to check a box stating whether they receive public assistance, and that Treasury would push to bar recipients from sending money abroad. He said people who can show where their money came from should still be able to send it, and that Treasury will use all tools against fraud. At an event Thursday in Oxon Hill, Md., Bessent said tech companies, AI labs and data center builders have done a terrible job explaining AI's value to Americans.

Right-leaning outlets covered two separate Bessent stories. Breitbart led with remittances, framing a ban on migrants on welfare sending money home, tying it to Minnesota's Somali community and al-Shabaab, and quoting his Fox News remarks. Its headline says "bans," while his quoted words describe a checkbox and a push. The Daily Signal reported from Oxon Hill on his criticism of AI developers. The alternative outlet CNBC took a different angle, focusing on Megaspeed restrictions and Bessent's deferral to Commerce. Left-leaning outlets had not reported this story at the time of writing, while right-leaning and alternative outlets had.