Earlier this month, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent relocated from his Washington, D.C., home to a military base following credible assassination threats from the Iranian regime. Bessent has led Operation Economic Outcast, an effort to cut regime members off from income and assets. While the operation has not brought down the regime, it has inflicted serious economic pain, and Iranian leaders are desperate to stop it. 

On Friday, Bessent delivered a blunt message to Iran’s leadership: assassination threats will not intimidate him into backing down. The campaign to cripple the regime’s economy will continue.

"Can you tell us just right off the bat, Mr. Secretary, about your quarters, where you are, where you're — maybe you don't want to tell us anything, but can you just fill us in on the situation you find yourself in and how that played out?" CNBC's Joe Kernen asked.

"Yeah, Joe, you know what I've got to say is F the Iranian leadership," Secretary Bessent said. "I'm not going to be coward [after] they have initiated death threats against me, [and] the other members of the Cabinet. We're not going to be coward. And it means what we are doing with Operation Economic Outcast is working. And why am I going to be afraid when the brave military personnel in the Gulf, President Trump constantly receives death threats?"

"What we are doing is working. And the IRGC, they're like a dangerous cornered animal," he added. "So I follow the Secret Service instructions and have moved from my home to a military base."

Recommended
John Kennedy Was Asked About the Nvidia Fiasco. His Reaction Did Not Disappoint Matt Vespa The Midterms — An Autopsy Victor Davis Hanson

Bessent’s move to a military base followed The Wall Street Journal’s publication of an aerial image believed to show his Georgetown-area home. Authorities believe the image helped the Iranians pinpoint its location, making the assassination threat more immediate. 

The Treasury Secretary went on to say a deal with the Iranian regime is increasingly unlikely following the midterm elections. He added that oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz are exceeding pre-war levels, even without Iranian oil, though shipments of refined products remain well below their previous threshold which is a major reason gasoline prices have remained elevated.

Operation Economic Outcast is expected to remain the administration’s primary means of punishing the regime, with further military action unlikely unless Iran escalates. The regime is struggling, but Bessent’s predicted timeline for its collapse has long since passed. Even with its floating oil reserves now exhausted, it remains unclear how much longer the regime can hold out.

Mossad Director Roman Gofman is in Washington, D.C., today, seeking to persuade the Trump administration to resume military operations against Iran, according to The Times of Israel.