Two days ago, Scott Bessent was relocated to a military base after an Iranian threat of assassination rose to a serious operational level. The IRGC made the Treasury Secretary a particular target after he imposed crushing tariffs on Iran's remaining trade and financial partners, part of the new "maximum pressure" campaign aimed at ending the Hormuz crisis and returning international shipping to the previous status quo.
Today, Bessent issued a defiant message to the IRGC, followed by a slap at the Wall Street Journal:
Scott Bessent: "F the Iranian leadership. I'm not going to be cowered." The Treasury Secretary was moved out of his D.C. home and onto a military base over Iran-linked threats, per WSJ. https://t.co/WaatXetN2a
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) November 13, 2026
BESSENT: You know what I'm going to say, Joe? 'F' the Iranian leadership. I'm not going to be cowered. They have initiated death threats against me [and] other members of the Cabinet. We're not going to be cowered. 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 receive death threats? What we are doing is working, and the IRGC – they're like a dangerous, cornered animal.
So I follow the Secret Service instructions and have moved from my home to a military base. And what I will tell you, Joe, I do want to say that one of the reasons I had to move is because the Wall Street Journal printed a photo of my house the day I bought it. It has geolocate on it, and in a highly irresponsible way, the editor – we pleaded with her not to print the location of my house. But she did anyway. Highly irresponsible and dangerous, and things like that have to stop.
Fox News reported on Bessent's relocation on Wednesday after the New York Times broke the story:
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has been relocated from his home in Washington, D.C. to a military base amid Iranian assassination threats this week, a senior administration official confirmed to Fox News.
Tehran has ramped up its efforts to target senior U.S. officials overseas, with White House chief of staff Stephen Miller and Secretary of State Marco Rubio also relocating to military or protected housing in recent weeks.
The senior official told Fox that threats against Bessent had reached "more than an advanced stage." The official declined to say when exactly Bessent was relocated.
Bessent has played a central role in the economic battle against Iran, launching "Operation Economic Outcast" this summer in an effort to isolate Iran's economy from the rest of the world.
Bessent and Rubio are not the only Cabinet members seeking shelter. The Daily Mail reports that Attorney General Todd Blanche relocated to military housing several months ago, which may raise questions about the threat profiles involved:
Attorney General Todd Blanche has been living on a US military base since early this year - joining a growing list of Cabinet officials who have been relocated onto military housing amid concerns for their safety.
Blanche reportedly relocated to the facility in early 2026, according to a source familiar with the matter. ...
Blanche is not the first DOJ chief to relocate to more heavily guarded housing during Trump's second White House term.
His predecessor, Pam Bondi, also moved to a military installation during her time as attorney general.
Are those threats related to Iran, or to threats of a more domestic nature? Attorneys General do not seem like a natural target for the IRGC, but at this point, the regime is desperate to break the stranglehold that Bessent, Trump, and the U.S. Navy have on their economy. The WSJ reports that IRGC hackers have declared open season on everything as a way to leverage chaos into pressure against the US to withdraw:
Operators of small-town water stations locked out of control panels across the Midwest. Networks on two Texas-bound energy tankers breached as they crossed into the Atlantic Ocean. Hundreds of refrigerators in European grocery stores ratcheted up to a blistering 120 degrees Fahrenheit.
Three cyberattacks since this summer with real-world impacts and one main suspect: Iranian hackers.
Iran has long been viewed as a second-tier cyber threat, lacking the technological and strategic sophistication of China, Russia and North Korea. Now, as the U.S. war with Iran grinds on, Tehran is flexing a new level of aggression that has cybersecurity experts warning that the Islamic Republic has become a more dangerous foe.
Tehran is expanding its targets and making the jump to attacks that inflict real-world harm, according to cyber officials and defense experts. The shift shows both a stronger grasp on new tools like artificial intelligence and a willingness to use them against a wider range of targets.
This is also a measure of desperation. Using these resources exposes them to counterintelligence and the creation of defenses that negate their value. The assassination plots are another display of impotence in the ability to break the blockade. As Bessent went on to argue, the IRGC had its chance to negotiate an end to this conflict in good faith but chose instead to renege on every agreement made. Bessent clearly iterated the official position of the Trump administration in this clip: 'F the Iranian leadership.'
Let's hope they stick to it.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are once again respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.
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