Scott Bessent: "If anything, defense spending needs to rise"

In the history of the world, there have been six reserve currencies.  Tell me what all the former reserve currencies have in common: Portugal, Spain, Holland, France, UK.  They were also security zones.  How did they lose currency reserve status?  Especially Spain, they got highly leveraged and could no longer support their military...  If anything, defense spending [in the U.S.] needs to rise.  You can't keep your reserve currency status if you lose the defense umbrella.

~ Scott Bessent, "The Fallacy of Bidenomics: A Return to Central Planning," Manhattan Institute, 30:30 mark, June 13, 2024