Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has moved from his Washington-area home to a military base after Iranian threats against his life, according to a report published Tuesday. The relocation reflects a sharp escalation in security concerns for the administration’s top financial envoy.
Security Concerns Prompt Move
The New York Times, citing three people familiar with the matter, reported that Bessent’s move follows a U.S. intelligence assessment that Iranian plots against current and former officials had advanced beyond preliminary stages. The assessment specifically identified threats directed at the Treasury secretary.
“Secretary Bessent will not be deterred by the Iranian regime’s threats,” a Treasury Department spokesperson said in a statement to the Times. He remains committed to the administration’s effort to squeeze Iran’s economy.
Bessent now leads the Trump administration’s “economic D‑day” campaign, a sweeping series of sanctions and financial restrictions aimed at cutting Iran off from global markets and crippling the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which controls large segments of the country’s economy.
U.S. officials say Iran lacks the capacity for large‑scale attacks inside the United States, but they treat targeted plots against individual Americans as a serious security risk.
Bessent becomes the latest senior Trump official to relocate to protected housing. At least six administration figures, including White House chief of staff Stephen Miller and former Attorney General Pam Bondi, have moved onto military bases or secure sites since last year.
A senior intelligence official warned in a memo reviewed by Reuters that Iranian plots had reached “advanced stages.” In response, the United States raised security alerts across the Middle East and trimmed staff at several diplomatic posts.
Iran has repeatedly denied any plot to assassinate American officials on U.S. soil.
Tehran has a history of threatening U.S. officials involved in the 2020 drone strike that killed IRGC commander Qassem Soleimani, a move ordered by President Donald Trump.
In 2024, federal prosecutors charged Revolutionary Guard operative Farhad Shakeri with plotting to assassinate Trump in retaliation for Soleimani’s death. Several former Trump national security officials linked to that strike also face Iranian threats.
Bessent’s relocation coincides with the administration’s intensified economic pressure on Tehran during the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war, which began on February 28. Trump has repeatedly pledged to bring the conflict to a swift end.
