WEBVTT - Mnuchin on Next Stimulus Bill 0:00:00.720 --> 0:00:03.720 This is Bloomberg Business Week. I'm Carol Masser and I'm 0:00:03.800 --> 0:00:06.320 Jason Kelley. We're right here every day bringing you the 0:00:06.400 --> 0:00:11.160 latest news from the world's of business and finance, plus technology, politics, economics, 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:14.280 all harnessing the power of Business Week reporters and editors, 0:00:14.440 --> 0:00:16.439 and of course Carol that's part of a team of 0:00:16.520 --> 0:00:20.439 twenty seven hundred journalists and analysts more than a hundred 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:23.280 and twenty countries and Jason. You can download Bloomberg Business 0:00:23.280 --> 0:00:26.239 Week on iTunes, SoundCloud, bl Bloomberg dot com. You can 0:00:26.280 --> 0:00:28.640 also listen to our radio show at two pm Eastern 0:00:28.680 --> 0:00:31.560 on Bloomberg Radio every weekday, or watch us on YouTube 0:00:31.600 --> 0:00:35.720 by searching Bloomberg Global News. Right now, I do want 0:00:35.720 --> 0:00:37.559 to take you back to our Bloomberg Live event, our 0:00:37.600 --> 0:00:40.960 invest Global Virtual event happening right now on Bloomberg Radio 0:00:41.000 --> 0:00:44.960 and TV as well. We have with us joining is 0:00:45.080 --> 0:00:49.320 U S Treasury Secretary Stephen Manu Shim joining David Rubinstein 0:00:49.680 --> 0:00:51.599 of the Carlisle Group. He's the co founder and co 0:00:51.720 --> 0:00:54.760 executive chairman. Let's listen in. I would like to do 0:00:54.800 --> 0:00:58.480 a stimulus bill. Unclear whether it's uh something that other 0:00:58.520 --> 0:01:00.720 Republicans want to do. On Capitol the What is your 0:01:00.800 --> 0:01:02.760 view on the likelihood of another bill and what is 0:01:02.760 --> 0:01:07.759 the timing for that? Well, David, it's something we're very 0:01:07.800 --> 0:01:12.000 seriously considering. The President has been clear that we put 0:01:12.040 --> 0:01:14.360 a lot of money into the economy. We had an 0:01:14.440 --> 0:01:18.800 unprecedented response on a bipartisan basis and in the last 0:01:18.840 --> 0:01:22.360 Care's bill, and there's no question that money is having 0:01:22.400 --> 0:01:26.080 a major impact on the economy. Whether it's the p 0:01:26.240 --> 0:01:30.280 p P which impacted fifty million workers, or whether it's 0:01:30.280 --> 0:01:34.000 the direct payments of over a hundred and sixty million 0:01:34.200 --> 0:01:37.479 or enhanced unemployment, these are all having an important part 0:01:37.520 --> 0:01:41.520 of protecting American workers in American business. I actually just 0:01:41.680 --> 0:01:46.080 left the Republican Senate lunch and we are beginning to 0:01:46.160 --> 0:01:49.640 discuss the different aspects of what another bill would look like. 0:01:49.760 --> 0:01:53.360 We want to take our time because number one, uh, 0:01:53.400 --> 0:01:55.240 there's a lot of money we still haven't put out. 0:01:55.400 --> 0:01:57.040 Number Two, we want to make sure whatever we do 0:01:57.120 --> 0:02:00.480 going forward is much more targeted to the businesnesses that 0:02:00.520 --> 0:02:04.720 are most impacted. But the timing, you think that it's 0:02:04.760 --> 0:02:08.800 likely that sometime in July a bill might pass both houses. 0:02:09.720 --> 0:02:13.359 I do that that would be the timing. Okay, and 0:02:13.680 --> 0:02:16.600 the negotiations. There are some people who think that you 0:02:16.639 --> 0:02:19.960 are not tough enough on the Democrats, and therefore some 0:02:20.080 --> 0:02:23.880 Republicans are saying that you should have a partner, Mark 0:02:24.000 --> 0:02:27.399 Meadows or somebody else to negotiate. But in your view, 0:02:27.440 --> 0:02:30.760 you'll be the principal person negotiating with the Congress on 0:02:30.840 --> 0:02:34.160 this legislation. Is that right? Well, David, I mean, let 0:02:34.160 --> 0:02:36.600 me first be clear what I'm doing. I'm doing at 0:02:36.600 --> 0:02:40.200 the direction of the President and the president's policies. Uh, 0:02:40.400 --> 0:02:43.560 last time Mark had just come on board, and I 0:02:43.600 --> 0:02:45.560 asked Mark to come up with me. He was He 0:02:45.600 --> 0:02:48.720 was very critical and helping with the last bill. So 0:02:48.800 --> 0:02:51.120 we have a great, great teamwork and he will be 0:02:51.160 --> 0:02:53.959 there with me. But let me just say I'm very 0:02:54.000 --> 0:02:56.359 proud of the fact that the last two bills were 0:02:56.400 --> 0:03:00.520 nine to zero and a hundred to zero. That this 0:03:00.600 --> 0:03:03.440 isn't a question of being tough enough or not being 0:03:03.480 --> 0:03:08.079 tough enough. We had unprecedented bipartisan support at a time 0:03:08.080 --> 0:03:10.960 when it was critical to get money into the economy 0:03:11.000 --> 0:03:14.359 and to help American workers. The parts that are the 0:03:14.400 --> 0:03:16.600 various bills have passed so far, which do you think 0:03:16.639 --> 0:03:19.720 has been the most effective so far. Uh, the p 0:03:19.720 --> 0:03:24.200 p P, the unemployment insurance, Uh, the other loan programs. 0:03:24.200 --> 0:03:26.160 Which are you think I think is working the best 0:03:26.200 --> 0:03:30.160 so far? Well, David is as you know, because you 0:03:30.160 --> 0:03:34.359 you've lived through other financial times. Uh, this is a 0:03:34.480 --> 0:03:38.280 very very different situation than we've ever seen before. This 0:03:38.360 --> 0:03:41.320 is the first time that we've shut down the entire 0:03:41.480 --> 0:03:45.360 US economy because of a virus, and we we had 0:03:45.400 --> 0:03:48.520 to have a different approach. And the reason I mean 0:03:48.560 --> 0:03:51.960 a different approach was it was very important to get 0:03:52.000 --> 0:03:55.200 money into the economy quickly. Things that took four or 0:03:55.200 --> 0:03:58.080 five or six months, even if they in the long 0:03:58.160 --> 0:04:01.200 term worked better, would not have been effective. So we 0:04:01.240 --> 0:04:03.600 needed to have a range of tools, and if you 0:04:03.640 --> 0:04:07.080 look at the Cares Act, there were different tools that 0:04:07.160 --> 0:04:12.800 we used to put massive amounts of money into the economy. Obviously, 0:04:12.840 --> 0:04:14.880 as I just mentioned before, you had the p p P, 0:04:15.080 --> 0:04:18.120 you had the direct payments, you had the unemployment. We 0:04:18.200 --> 0:04:21.359 also had a program for the airlines, which was was 0:04:21.520 --> 0:04:26.159 very critical. We had fifty billion dollars that we could 0:04:26.320 --> 0:04:29.320 work with the Federal Reserve on the thirteen three facilities, 0:04:29.320 --> 0:04:31.839 and this really worked perfect. The mirror announcement of some 0:04:31.920 --> 0:04:36.919 of these facilities unlocked the markets even without spending a 0:04:37.160 --> 0:04:41.440 penny of taxpayer dollars. It unlocked to the point where 0:04:41.480 --> 0:04:45.320 you know, we've had unprecedented corporate issuance. Companies like Boeing, 0:04:45.320 --> 0:04:46.919 which I thought we're going to need to come to 0:04:47.040 --> 0:04:49.880 us in our national security program, bar twenty five billion 0:04:49.920 --> 0:04:53.000 dollars in the market without putting a penny of taxpayer 0:04:53.000 --> 0:04:57.520 money at risk. So right now, would you say that 0:04:57.600 --> 0:05:02.000 the legislation that you've passed as working reasonably well? Would 0:05:02.040 --> 0:05:04.120 you say the Fed has done as good a job 0:05:04.160 --> 0:05:05.760 as you would like them to do. They have an 0:05:05.839 --> 0:05:09.279 lending program which I think has not yet actually spent money. 0:05:09.320 --> 0:05:12.200 And can you say whether the President is happy today 0:05:12.320 --> 0:05:14.720 or happier today with the Secretary with the head of 0:05:14.760 --> 0:05:18.560 the Federal Reserve. Well, I think I think the Federal 0:05:18.600 --> 0:05:22.040 Reserve has done a phenomenal job. We speak to them 0:05:22.080 --> 0:05:26.640 almost on a daily basis. These programs are a combination 0:05:27.320 --> 0:05:30.359 of work of the Federal Reserve and the Treasury, and 0:05:30.400 --> 0:05:32.800 I think we've worked very well together. Every single one 0:05:32.839 --> 0:05:35.640 of these programs is now up and running. So we 0:05:35.760 --> 0:05:39.640 have a municipal bond program, we have a money market program, 0:05:39.640 --> 0:05:42.520 we have a commercial paper program. We have a main 0:05:42.560 --> 0:05:44.800 street program that's now up and running. We have a 0:05:44.839 --> 0:05:49.000 corporate primary and secondary. We had a program that lent 0:05:49.120 --> 0:05:52.839 to two banks and non banks for P p P loans. 0:05:52.920 --> 0:05:57.280 So the Fed acted in unprecedented response. And yes, I 0:05:57.520 --> 0:06:00.279 I think you've seen the President is very please with 0:06:00.320 --> 0:06:03.440 what the FETE has been doing. Okay, in terms of 0:06:03.720 --> 0:06:06.400 these programs, they do cost money. So the debt of 0:06:06.440 --> 0:06:08.719 the United States has increased a fair bit. I think 0:06:08.760 --> 0:06:11.560 maybe four trillion dollars or something like that. Are you 0:06:11.640 --> 0:06:14.080 worried about the impact of that, either on the dollar 0:06:14.320 --> 0:06:20.080 or inflation? Well, David, this is this is like a war. 0:06:20.920 --> 0:06:23.800 Fighting those virus is like fighting a war. And the 0:06:23.839 --> 0:06:26.919 President I were determined to spend what we needed to 0:06:26.960 --> 0:06:29.880 spend to protect the American workers in the American public. 0:06:29.920 --> 0:06:32.920 This was not their fault. So no different than going 0:06:32.920 --> 0:06:35.640 into a war. You don't say I'm gonna stop here 0:06:35.960 --> 0:06:40.000 and and and deal with the consequences. I think over 0:06:40.040 --> 0:06:42.799 the long term, the good news is long term interest 0:06:42.920 --> 0:06:46.320 rates are very low, so the cost of this debt 0:06:46.560 --> 0:06:50.320 is very low. We're borrowing a lot of money long term. 0:06:50.480 --> 0:06:53.440 We have a lot of liquidity. Uh, the dollar is 0:06:53.480 --> 0:06:55.560 the reserve currency of the world, so we have a 0:06:55.560 --> 0:06:59.000 lot of liquidity and borrowing. And yes, over time we're 0:06:59.000 --> 0:07:01.839 going to need to deal with the debt. I think 0:07:01.880 --> 0:07:03.359 you have to look at both the debt as a 0:07:03.400 --> 0:07:07.400 percentage of GDP and a percentage of what it costs 0:07:07.440 --> 0:07:09.720 to carry it. So these are things we'll look at 0:07:09.840 --> 0:07:14.400 over time. In terms of the loans that are being made. Now, 0:07:14.440 --> 0:07:16.520 at one point you had said it was important not 0:07:16.600 --> 0:07:19.800 to reveal who the borrowers were. Recently you've said you 0:07:19.840 --> 0:07:22.440 think it's okay that it's closed. Why did you change 0:07:22.480 --> 0:07:26.080 your mind or why did the government change its position? Well, David, 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:29.400 let me clarify when when we negotiated these deals on 0:07:29.440 --> 0:07:34.760 a bipartisan basis, we agreed to an unprecedented level of 0:07:34.840 --> 0:07:38.800 transparency and oversight. And we didn't need to do this, 0:07:39.000 --> 0:07:42.480 but we agreed within the federal reserve programs and within 0:07:42.560 --> 0:07:46.560 the programs coming from the Treasury, the direct loans, there 0:07:46.560 --> 0:07:50.560 would be complete transparency, and that was very clear. We 0:07:50.680 --> 0:07:55.520 never really discussed the specifics of the p p P. Now, 0:07:55.640 --> 0:07:58.600 it is true when the SBA makes seven A loans, 0:07:59.320 --> 0:08:02.880 they are transparent. The issue here was you had businesses 0:08:02.920 --> 0:08:06.280 that took loans based upon their payroll and and no 0:08:06.480 --> 0:08:11.600 different we're not publicizing everybody's name who is getting enhanced unemployment. 0:08:12.400 --> 0:08:16.200 We wanted to make sure we protected small businesses the 0:08:16.240 --> 0:08:19.480 confidentiality of their payroll. So I think we've struck the 0:08:19.520 --> 0:08:24.080 appropriate balance on protection and transparency. And what we just 0:08:24.120 --> 0:08:27.960 agreed on a bipartisan basis with the SBA Committee is 0:08:28.000 --> 0:08:33.640 that we would release the names on about seventy five 0:08:33.640 --> 0:08:37.960 percent of the dollars and about twenty of the actual loans, 0:08:38.080 --> 0:08:40.679 So that's all loans above a hundred and fifty thousand, 0:08:40.760 --> 0:08:42.800 and we'll put them in buckets, so you don't know 0:08:42.840 --> 0:08:46.240 the exact size, but we'll bucket them. Uh, there'll be 0:08:46.760 --> 0:08:49.840 you know, one fifty to three fifty. I think it's 0:08:50.120 --> 0:08:53.640 a million to two million, five million to ten million, 0:08:53.720 --> 0:08:57.000 various different buckets. And on the very small loans a 0:08:57.120 --> 0:08:59.800 hundred and fifty thousand and below or at least the 0:09:00.000 --> 0:09:02.760 detales of the names, but not the borrowers. So I 0:09:02.800 --> 0:09:06.960 think we got to an important compromise of transparency on 0:09:07.000 --> 0:09:10.000 the majority of the money with the idea of protecting 0:09:10.120 --> 0:09:16.920 very small businesses sold proprietors and and and others confidentiality. Okay, 0:09:17.240 --> 0:09:19.959 in this quarter, we have slipped into our recession. And 0:09:20.120 --> 0:09:23.160 according to the Natural Bureau Economic Research, which makes the 0:09:23.160 --> 0:09:25.440 official determinations and when you're in a recession or not, 0:09:26.040 --> 0:09:27.760 do you think by the end of this year we 0:09:27.840 --> 0:09:32.280 might be out of the recession, David, I I do, 0:09:32.400 --> 0:09:38.280 But the the traditional economic metrics are aren't really appropriate 0:09:39.000 --> 0:09:42.640 given we shut down the economy. So first, let me 0:09:42.679 --> 0:09:45.400 say there were way too many people that lost their 0:09:45.480 --> 0:09:48.880 jobs and got laid off, and again, we're not going 0:09:48.920 --> 0:09:51.680 to be done until we get every single one of 0:09:51.679 --> 0:09:54.880 those people back to work. So I'm not really focused 0:09:54.920 --> 0:09:57.599 on the technical issue of it is a recession or 0:09:57.640 --> 0:10:01.440 it's not a recession. I'm focused on helping all these 0:10:01.440 --> 0:10:05.240 small businesses and all the workers, and that that's what 0:10:05.320 --> 0:10:08.800 our job. And I think you saw the recent employment numbers. 0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:11.599 People thought there'd be another eight million people unemployed. We 0:10:11.679 --> 0:10:14.120 put two and a half million people back to work. Clearly, 0:10:14.160 --> 0:10:17.200 this is the p P P working. And you saw 0:10:17.200 --> 0:10:20.440 a great retail sales. I think you're gonna see the 0:10:20.520 --> 0:10:23.400 economy had a very bad second quarter. I think you're 0:10:23.400 --> 0:10:26.640 going to see a spectacular rebound off the bottom in 0:10:26.679 --> 0:10:30.000 the third quarter. And some people who have been gotten 0:10:30.000 --> 0:10:32.240 the p PP loans are very happy with them, but 0:10:32.320 --> 0:10:35.200 they say it's unclear whether they have to repay them 0:10:35.280 --> 0:10:38.080 or not. Will the s b A clarify who actually 0:10:38.080 --> 0:10:41.920 has to repay or not repay those loans. Well, the 0:10:41.920 --> 0:10:44.760 good news is again I think we struck the right 0:10:44.800 --> 0:10:49.400 balance here and for for all loans that are less 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:53.200 than two million dollars, we created a safe harbor around 0:10:53.200 --> 0:10:57.480 the certification unless there's things like fraud. And for loans 0:10:57.520 --> 0:10:59.599 over two million, they're going to go through an electronic 0:10:59.679 --> 0:11:02.840 review do to make sure that the companies needed the 0:11:02.880 --> 0:11:06.280 money in the certification, and I think that would be 0:11:06.280 --> 0:11:13.240 a very fair process as we go through that, if 0:11:13.280 --> 0:11:16.600 you owe taxes on April fifteen, you could file on July. 0:11:18.000 --> 0:11:20.840 Is there any consideration, as some people have speculated that 0:11:20.880 --> 0:11:26.920 it might be postponed once again to maybe September fift Well, David, 0:11:26.960 --> 0:11:29.680 it's something I'm thinking about. As of now, we're not 0:11:29.840 --> 0:11:33.040 intending on doing that, but it is something we may consider. 0:11:33.960 --> 0:11:36.880 I am pleased to report that I think it was 0:11:36.920 --> 0:11:40.240 absolutely the right thing to do at the time, because 0:11:40.440 --> 0:11:43.720 we were absolutely worried about people couldn't get to their 0:11:43.720 --> 0:11:48.320 accountants couldn't get their information. And I'm pleased to report 0:11:48.480 --> 0:11:53.280 that returns filed or down only ten percent year over year, 0:11:53.840 --> 0:11:57.520 and refunds are down only ten pc. So the majority 0:11:57.520 --> 0:12:01.640 of Americans have filed the mad already. Those people that 0:12:02.280 --> 0:12:06.080 needed to get refunds got them. I'd encourage all Americans, 0:12:06.440 --> 0:12:08.920 if you can file your tax returns, go ahead and 0:12:08.960 --> 0:12:11.559 do it, particularly if you think you have a refund, 0:12:11.960 --> 0:12:14.800 and we will look carefully as we we approached this 0:12:14.920 --> 0:12:19.240 July day. Okay, now, you've talked about shutting down the economy, 0:12:19.280 --> 0:12:21.840 which obviously we had to do and was done, but 0:12:21.960 --> 0:12:24.520 you've also said recently that we can't do it again 0:12:24.559 --> 0:12:26.839 because we just can't afford to do it. So are 0:12:26.880 --> 0:12:29.720 you worried that new COVID cases are breaking out in 0:12:29.960 --> 0:12:32.640 states like Florida or Texas and how will you deal 0:12:32.760 --> 0:12:35.000 with that in terms of opening up the economy again 0:12:35.200 --> 0:12:39.360 but also protecting the safety of people. Well, David, I 0:12:39.400 --> 0:12:42.200 think the President made the absolute right decision. Was a 0:12:42.320 --> 0:12:46.560 very difficult decision in shutting down the entire economy. The 0:12:46.640 --> 0:12:49.560 issues that we were concerned about at the time were 0:12:49.800 --> 0:12:55.040 hospitals were getting way overcrowded. We had issues of ventilators, 0:12:55.480 --> 0:12:59.439 and we had issues of not having enough medicines. Um. 0:12:59.720 --> 0:13:02.600 I think, you know, kind of. We had an unprecedented effort, 0:13:02.760 --> 0:13:05.240 especially in places like New York, where we built out 0:13:05.320 --> 0:13:09.240 extra hospital beds in the convention center. We sent the 0:13:09.880 --> 0:13:12.800 Navy ship there to be ready as a hospital in 0:13:13.040 --> 0:13:16.880 The good news is those never needed to be used. Um. 0:13:17.000 --> 0:13:19.360 Right now, we're in a different situation. Right now, we 0:13:19.440 --> 0:13:23.000 have plenty of capacity, We've got plenty of ventilators, We've 0:13:23.040 --> 0:13:28.440 made great progress on viral treatments, and we've had made 0:13:28.480 --> 0:13:31.960 great progress on testing. So I think this is going 0:13:32.000 --> 0:13:33.760 to be an issue that we have to look at 0:13:34.000 --> 0:13:37.920 on a local by local basis. Where there are breakouts, 0:13:37.960 --> 0:13:41.440 they'll they'll be contract tracing UM. And I think we're 0:13:41.440 --> 0:13:44.280 just in a completely different situation. So I I think 0:13:44.320 --> 0:13:46.640 it would be highly unlikely we get to a point 0:13:47.080 --> 0:13:50.280 where we need to shut the economy down again. Okay, 0:13:50.480 --> 0:13:53.479 you were one of the principal negotiators with Bob Leheiser 0:13:53.520 --> 0:13:56.280 of the deal with China. Are you confident that the 0:13:56.360 --> 0:13:58.800 Chinese can honor the commitments to buy the products from 0:13:58.800 --> 0:14:02.160 the United States that they agreed too. I have every 0:14:02.240 --> 0:14:07.880 expectation that they will. They have continued to tell us 0:14:07.920 --> 0:14:11.119 that they will, as recently as last week when Secretary 0:14:11.160 --> 0:14:15.400 of Pompeio met with one of the senior people that 0:14:15.440 --> 0:14:18.840 flew in from China and they had a summit. So 0:14:19.640 --> 0:14:21.960 I have that I have that expectation that they will 0:14:22.040 --> 0:14:25.120 lead up to their obligation. Now having said that, UM, 0:14:25.200 --> 0:14:28.320 let me just comment on I think the world wants 0:14:28.360 --> 0:14:33.240 a lot more transparency on COVID. How did it start, 0:14:33.400 --> 0:14:36.560 how did it spread, how did it spread around the world, 0:14:36.600 --> 0:14:39.520 And it didn't spread within China, So we shouldn't confuse 0:14:39.600 --> 0:14:43.720 these two issues. Yes, we have expectations that they will 0:14:43.800 --> 0:14:46.120 live up to their trade agreements, but we also have 0:14:46.240 --> 0:14:49.560 expectations they need a lot more transparency around the disease. 0:14:50.800 --> 0:14:53.520 There is not more transparency. Do you think there will 0:14:53.560 --> 0:14:57.320 be a decoupling with the Chinese economy and the US economy. 0:14:57.360 --> 0:15:00.080 I think you have talked about that recently, but you 0:15:00.120 --> 0:15:02.160 see that as being separate in the trade agreement. But 0:15:02.400 --> 0:15:04.200 are you worried about or you think it could be 0:15:04.360 --> 0:15:07.560 appropriate to have a decoupling at some point? Well, I 0:15:07.600 --> 0:15:10.880 don't want to speculate, David, it could, Um, I think 0:15:10.920 --> 0:15:12.760 you have a lot of companies that are beginning to 0:15:12.840 --> 0:15:16.600 look at their supply chains and making sure they diversify them, 0:15:16.680 --> 0:15:19.040 and I think that's something that's prudent to do wherever 0:15:19.120 --> 0:15:21.200 they are around the world. You have a lot of 0:15:21.200 --> 0:15:23.640 companies that are looking at bringing jobs back to the 0:15:23.720 --> 0:15:27.880 US because of our tax incentives in other areas. As 0:15:28.040 --> 0:15:31.360 we have said all along, if we can compete with 0:15:31.560 --> 0:15:34.440 China on a fair and level playing field, it is 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:38.960 a great opportunity for US businesses and US workers, as 0:15:39.080 --> 0:15:43.240 China has a large, growing middle class several hundred million people. 0:15:43.680 --> 0:15:47.200 But if we can't participate and compete on on a 0:15:47.200 --> 0:15:50.400 fair basis, then you are going to see a decoupling 0:15:51.280 --> 0:15:56.240 going forward. So the Chinese government is thinking about changing 0:15:56.280 --> 0:15:59.280 the ways in which it operates and overseas Hong Kong. 0:16:00.080 --> 0:16:03.200 The President has been concerned about that, so has Secretary Pompeio. 0:16:03.720 --> 0:16:07.160 If the Chinese government were to go forward with legislations considering, 0:16:07.560 --> 0:16:09.840 do you think the US government might impose some type 0:16:09.840 --> 0:16:14.120 of sanctions to show its disapproval of what's going on? Well, David, 0:16:14.120 --> 0:16:17.040 it's it's our policy. We don't comment on future sanctions. 0:16:17.120 --> 0:16:20.640 But what I will comment on is the President and 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:22.920 This was a few weeks ago. It is Rose Gardens 0:16:22.960 --> 0:16:26.960 speech instructed me to convene what's called the President's Working 0:16:27.000 --> 0:16:30.280 Group on Capital Markets. This is myself and all the 0:16:30.320 --> 0:16:34.440 major regulators, and we're looking at all of these issues 0:16:34.560 --> 0:16:36.840 very carefully as it relates to both Hong Kong and 0:16:36.880 --> 0:16:40.640 as it relates to UH Chinese issuance on on the 0:16:40.760 --> 0:16:44.520 US exchanges. Hey, now, recently there was a report that 0:16:44.560 --> 0:16:46.480 we're running out of not running out of, but we're 0:16:46.480 --> 0:16:49.880 having a little uh less demand for less supply. I 0:16:49.920 --> 0:16:52.800 should say up coins. We have a lot of dollar 0:16:52.880 --> 0:16:55.560 bills I guess in circulation, but because of COVID, we 0:16:55.560 --> 0:16:57.640 don't have as many coins. So what are you gonna 0:16:57.680 --> 0:17:01.360 do about that? Well, David, let me first say I 0:17:01.360 --> 0:17:04.520 want to thank the hard working men and women at 0:17:04.520 --> 0:17:07.679 the buer of engraving and at the mint UH and 0:17:07.680 --> 0:17:09.720 that that's where we make both the money and where 0:17:09.760 --> 0:17:13.440 we make the coins. And through this entire period they 0:17:13.440 --> 0:17:16.480 didn't shut down production. In matter of fact, as it 0:17:16.520 --> 0:17:22.600 relates to UH circulating money UH in in bills, we 0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:26.159 had unprecedented deliveries to the Federal Reserve which they were 0:17:26.200 --> 0:17:29.760 able to put into the various banks as it relates 0:17:29.800 --> 0:17:33.919 to coins, because so business, so many businesses shut down, 0:17:34.400 --> 0:17:38.159 a lot of coins got stuck in in the system. 0:17:38.200 --> 0:17:40.679 So we we got a little bit far behind on coins. 0:17:40.720 --> 0:17:42.920 But I know they're redoubling their efforts and that that'll 0:17:42.960 --> 0:17:46.320 workout fine. I have a lot of pennies and quarters 0:17:46.359 --> 0:17:48.679 at my house. Maybe I can drop them off somewhere 0:17:48.680 --> 0:17:50.720 and help them some loudest way. I'll let you know, 0:17:51.320 --> 0:17:53.840 So ask as many as you have, David. I know 0:17:53.880 --> 0:17:58.359 you've got plenty of them, okay. So, Um, being Secretary 0:17:58.359 --> 0:18:00.919 of the Treasury in a normal time is not easy, 0:18:01.240 --> 0:18:03.680 very busy, one of the most important jobs in Washington 0:18:03.760 --> 0:18:06.200 or in the country. But during this time you've been, 0:18:06.240 --> 0:18:08.840 you know, working around the clock. Have you had any 0:18:08.880 --> 0:18:13.000 time to just breathe, any time to see your family? 0:18:13.040 --> 0:18:15.080 How are you? Are you working out of your office, 0:18:15.080 --> 0:18:16.840 You're working out of your home? How are you getting 0:18:16.840 --> 0:18:20.679 through this period of time? I'm working out of the Treasury, 0:18:20.720 --> 0:18:23.000 So basically every day I go from my home to 0:18:23.040 --> 0:18:25.360 the Treasury, to the White House, which is right next door, 0:18:25.400 --> 0:18:28.919 and back. Um, we we've had about a hundred and 0:18:28.920 --> 0:18:32.520 fifty people working around the clock in in the Treasury 0:18:32.520 --> 0:18:35.320 and the rest of the people working telecommuting. I think, 0:18:35.359 --> 0:18:39.080 like a lot of businesses, we were actually pleasantly surprised 0:18:39.160 --> 0:18:42.639 that a lot of areas we could effectively work by telework. 0:18:42.800 --> 0:18:44.800 There were other areas like the I R s where 0:18:44.800 --> 0:18:47.200 it was much harder to do certain things. You can't 0:18:47.240 --> 0:18:50.320 open the mail. We had truckloads of mail back up 0:18:50.359 --> 0:18:54.199 in physical returns and audits. But uh, I want to 0:18:54.240 --> 0:18:58.440 thank we had an enormous uh group of people here 0:18:58.480 --> 0:19:00.960 that have been working around the class and uh, I'll 0:19:00.960 --> 0:19:03.000 have plenty of time to rest down down the road. 0:19:03.080 --> 0:19:08.200 My family understands that percise there's any time it just 0:19:08.200 --> 0:19:10.639 just relax, a little bit of walk or exercise, or 0:19:10.680 --> 0:19:12.399 you have no time for that, trying to do a 0:19:12.400 --> 0:19:15.040 little bit of exercise. Never enough, but trying to do 0:19:15.080 --> 0:19:19.199 a little bit. So as you go forward, UM, you 0:19:19.200 --> 0:19:22.480 obviously enjoy the job, and you obviously are well respected 0:19:22.480 --> 0:19:25.159 by many of your colleagues. UM. So, if President Trump 0:19:25.240 --> 0:19:27.760 is reelected, would you be interested in serving another four 0:19:27.840 --> 0:19:31.359 years in this position? Yes, David, as I said before, 0:19:31.440 --> 0:19:35.480 I would be, But that's for the president to decide, Okay, 0:19:35.720 --> 0:19:38.760 And going forward, what kind of advice would you give 0:19:38.840 --> 0:19:41.600 to anybody else who serves as Secretary Treasury at some 0:19:41.680 --> 0:19:44.120 point what is the best thing to do and what's 0:19:44.160 --> 0:19:48.640 the thing you should avoid being doing as Secretary Treasury. Well, 0:19:48.680 --> 0:19:52.000 the interesting part about Secretary of Treasury is it spans 0:19:52.040 --> 0:19:55.840 across so many different parts of the government. So a 0:19:55.960 --> 0:19:59.480 large part of the job is domestic and international finance. 0:20:00.160 --> 0:20:02.440 Very big part of the job is just operational. We 0:20:02.600 --> 0:20:05.440 we we manage a lot of the payment processing, obviously, 0:20:05.480 --> 0:20:08.840 all the borrowings for the government, and something that I 0:20:08.920 --> 0:20:10.640 spent a lot of my time on and I think 0:20:10.680 --> 0:20:13.399 I've talked about this before. Prior to COVID, I was 0:20:13.440 --> 0:20:17.280 probably spending fifty percent of my time on national security 0:20:17.320 --> 0:20:21.320 issues because sanctions have been such an important part of 0:20:21.720 --> 0:20:26.240 our national security strategy. And despite John Poulton's comments in 0:20:26.280 --> 0:20:28.879 the books complaining that I didn't do enough sanctions, it's 0:20:28.920 --> 0:20:32.520 really somewhat ridiculous since under President Trump we've done more 0:20:32.560 --> 0:20:37.679 sanctions than any previous administrations combined. But we've had a 0:20:37.760 --> 0:20:42.240 very unified approach myself, Secretary Pompeo, d O D, and 0:20:42.320 --> 0:20:44.680 the c i A as to how we approached the 0:20:44.760 --> 0:20:49.240 national security issues. Hey, the stock market is roughly where 0:20:49.240 --> 0:20:51.919 it was before we went into the recession. Why do 0:20:51.960 --> 0:20:54.320 you think the stock market seems to be so ebulliant 0:20:54.359 --> 0:20:57.080 relatively strong when the economy is not as strong as 0:20:57.080 --> 0:20:59.080 a stock market. That has that been a surprise to 0:20:59.080 --> 0:21:01.040 you as somebody who used to spend a lot of 0:21:01.080 --> 0:21:04.520 time in the markets, Well, David, having spent a lot 0:21:04.520 --> 0:21:06.800 of time in the markets, as I always like to say, 0:21:07.560 --> 0:21:09.639 I'm not good at predicting where they are going to 0:21:09.720 --> 0:21:13.119 be tomorrow or next week. I am good at predicting 0:21:13.480 --> 0:21:16.200 where they're going to be in the future. I think 0:21:16.200 --> 0:21:18.439 what you've seen and first let me just say the 0:21:18.560 --> 0:21:22.560 stock market is a market of stocks. So certain stocks 0:21:22.600 --> 0:21:26.000 have done phenomenally well. You look at companies like Apple 0:21:26.080 --> 0:21:29.159 that are great companies, and and again Covid is not 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:32.200 going to have a giant impact on their business and 0:21:32.320 --> 0:21:34.679 they're a technology leader. You look at some of the 0:21:34.720 --> 0:21:39.680 retailers and that they've had a pretty difficult situation. Uh, 0:21:40.040 --> 0:21:42.960 if you haven't been a major retailer, you know you 0:21:43.040 --> 0:21:46.320 had your stores closed, You're already dealing with online issues. 0:21:47.040 --> 0:21:50.639 And the fact that interest rates came down obviously also 0:21:50.840 --> 0:21:54.719 changes valuations. But I think the bigger issue is the 0:21:54.840 --> 0:21:58.200 US is the still the bright spark of the economic 0:21:58.440 --> 0:22:01.840 growth around the world. Beloved confidence that our economy is 0:22:01.840 --> 0:22:04.119 going to come back in the third and fourth quarter, 0:22:04.600 --> 0:22:08.960 and people want to invest in the US. So as 0:22:09.040 --> 0:22:10.840 part of a new bill, if a bill does go 0:22:10.920 --> 0:22:14.480 through Congress, would infrastructure be part of the President is 0:22:14.520 --> 0:22:16.600 talked about having an infrastructure bill. Would that be a 0:22:16.720 --> 0:22:19.440 separate or would that possibly part of our stimulus bill 0:22:19.640 --> 0:22:22.320 or a relief bill. I think, as you know, the 0:22:22.359 --> 0:22:25.960 President has been very interested in infrastructure since the campaign. 0:22:25.960 --> 0:22:29.280 It's something we've been talking about on a bipartisan basis. 0:22:30.080 --> 0:22:34.160 The President's interested in roads and bridges and tunnels, and 0:22:34.320 --> 0:22:37.800