Bessent Moves to a Military Base After Iranian Threats, but Treasury Says He ‘Will Not Be Deterred’
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has moved from his Washington-area home to a military base after an Iranian threat against his life, the New York Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
Bessent has spearheaded the administration’s push to cripple Iran’s economy through a web of sanctions, vowing an “economic onslaught” against Tehran, CBS News reported. The severity of the threat was unclear.
“The secretary will not be deterred by the Iranian regime’s threats and remains committed to executing Operation Economic Outcast and maintaining the blockade, which together are collapsing Iran’s economy,” a Treasury spokesperson told the Guardian.
Plotting at a ‘More Advanced Stage’
Iranian plotting against U.S. officials has reached a “more advanced stage,” the Times reported, citing three sources. Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton warned last month that Iran had “substantially increased” efforts to target Americans.
Clayton’s warning, in an unclassified memo sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, came as the State Department adjusted staffing at posts across the Middle East, CBS News reported.
Bessent joins Rubio and new White House chief of staff Stephen Miller among senior officials who have left their homes for a military base or protected housing, the Guardian reported.
A source told the Guardian that security concerns rose after the Wall Street Journal published an aerial view of the $12.5 million Georgetown mansion Bessent bought shortly after his confirmation in January 2025.
“The news media has an obligation to act responsibly amid growing threats against public officials,” that source told the Guardian. Iran has previously denied plotting to attack officials on U.S. soil.
The Squeeze on Tehran
Bessent has led Operation Economic Outcast since August to push Tehran to stop attacks on shipping and reopen the Strait of Hormuz, largely closed since Feb. 28, the Guardian reported.
The campaign runs alongside a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports that Treasury says, together with the sanctions, is “collapsing Iran’s economy,” according to the Guardian.
Fox News flagged the move in its Iran war coverage, where it described the threats as Iranian assassination threats driving Bessent onto a military base amid escalating security fears.
The Treasury Department’s pressure campaign has hit Middle Eastern bank branches and financial firms that help Iran move money, and Bessent has called its goal the “economic asphyxiation” of the Islamic republic, the Guardian reported.
The threats come as the U.S. military has pulled some aircraft from two British bases in recent weeks over reported Iranian threats, CBS News reported.
Rubio said Tuesday he saw no need to resume major combat operations against Iran because sanctions and other restrictions were working so effectively, CBS News reported.
With diplomacy gathering steam and the blockade still in place, the official running the sanctions now lives on a military base, a reminder that Tehran’s threats remain a live concern.
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