US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sharply criticized Iran's leadership on Friday, confirming for the first time that he had been forced to leave his home and move to a military base following assassination threats against him.
"You know what I have to say, Joe [Kernen, CNBC host]? F the Iranian leadership," Bessent said bluntly during an interview with the financial news network when asked about the circumstances surrounding his relocation.
"I'm not going to be cowered by the death threats they have made against me. The other Cabinet members won't be cowered either," he added.
According to Bessent, the threats themselves demonstrate that the US economic pressure campaign against Iran, known as "Operation Economic Outcast," is successfully weakening the regime in Tehran.
"What we're doing is working. Why should I be afraid when our brave military personnel are in the Persian Gulf and President Trump receives death threats all the time?" he said.
Bessent described Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as "a dangerous animal backed into a corner."
Bessent criticizes Wall Street Journal over publication of home photo
The Treasury secretary confirmed that he relocated to the military base at the direction of the US Secret Service. He also sharply criticized The Wall Street Journal, accusing the newspaper of publishing a photograph of his home that made it possible to identify its precise location, despite repeated requests from his staff not to do so.
"This is extremely irresponsible and dangerous conduct, and things like this must stop," he said.
Bessent has led the Trump administration's sanctions and economic pressure campaign against Iran in recent months, alongside the US naval blockade.
Earlier this week, The New York Times and Reuters reported that Bessent had moved to a military base following intelligence warnings about Iranian threats against senior US officials.