Scott Bessent cannot save the bond market from Congress’s $40 trillion national debt

Published August 21, 2026 2:55pm ET | Updated August 21, 2026 2:55pm ET



One month after the bond market went ballistic, with the 10-year Treasury yield breaching 4.7% and the 30-year Treasury yield skyrocketing to 5.17%, the market is now well and truly imploding. The benchmark 10-year hasn’t come down, and the 30-year has catapulted toward 5.3%, hitting its highest level since before the Great Recession.

The financial fracas prompted Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to announce on Wednesday that the Treasury would “at least” double buybacks of long-term bonds to stave off the sell-off. The strategy worked — for less than 12 hours. By Thursday morning, the 30-year yield had fallen, then risen some 10-odd basis points again.

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