Donald Trump 2.0 cabinet: Billionaire Scott Bessent chosen as treasury chief; Dave Weldon to direct CDC

The Donald Trump 2.0 cabinet continues to expand as the United States (US) President-elect has named two more Republicans who will be a part of his administration. 

On Friday (Nov 22), Trump named billionaire Scott Bessent as his treasury secretary, choosing the hedge fund manager to help execute an agenda promising tax cuts and tariffs.

Meanwhile, Trump also chose former Congressman and medical doctor Dave Weldon as the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Who is Scott Bessent?

Bessent, 62, is the chief executive officer (CEO) of Key Square Group. Originally from the US state of South Carolina, Bessent attended Yale University and served as chief investment officer of Soros Fund Management, the macroeconomic investment firm of billionaire George Soros.

In 2015, he raised capital, including $2 billion from Soros, to start his own hedge fund, according to a report by the news agency AFP.

"Scott is widely respected as one of the world's foremost international investors and geopolitical and economic strategists," Trump said in a statement on Friday.

"He will help me usher in a new Golden Age for the United States, as we fortify our position as the world's leading economy," Trump said, adding that Bessent would also help "reinvigorate the private sector, and help curb the unsustainable path of federal debt."

The hedge fund manager has known the Trump family for 30 years. He had recently served as an advisor to Trump.

Bessent has called for tax reform and deregulation to spur growth.

Who is Dave Weldon?

Dave Weldon, 71, had served in the US House of Representatives representing Florida's 15th district from 1995-2009. He did not seek reelection in 2008. Weldon earned his MD degree at the University of Buffalo School of Medicine in 1981. He had served in the US Army.

In a statement, Trump said on Friday that Weldon would "proudly restore the CDC to its true purpose, and will work to end the Chronic Disease Epidemic."

Weldon would replace Dr Mandy Cohen, an internal medicine physician and former chief of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, where she led the state's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a Congressman, Weldon introduced a bill that would give responsibility for the nation's vaccine safety to an independent agency within the Department of Health and Human Services, removing most vaccine safety research from the CDC, as per a report by USA Today.

(With inputs from agencies)