Gleeful Scott Bessent reveals his red-faced threat to Trump's polarizing Cabinet official

Donald Trump's Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made headlines last fall after a report revealed a threat he lobbed against housing official Bill Pulte.

A Senate budget hearing Wednesday gave Bessent an opportunity to clarify the precise warning he made.

'Did you tell Pulte you were gonna punch him in the face?' Senator Thom Tillis, an North Carolina Republican, asked Bessent.

'No sir,' Bessent answered with a grin. 'I actually said I was gonna kick his a**.'

The glib answer came as GOP senators have openly expressed problems with Trump's recent elevation of Pulte to the position of acting Director of National Intelligence.

Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's current DNI, announced her resignation on May 22, effective at the end of June. She cited a desire to be with her husband as he battles cancer.

Tillis responded to Bessent by saying he shared his sentiment and would not support Pulte. 

'Whoever told the president to go ahead and commit to [Pulte's appointment] publicly before vetting it should lose their jobs,' Tillis told CNBC this week.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, indicated that it would be difficult for the White House to get the Senate votes necessary to give Pulte long-term confirmation in the role.

'I see no evidence of any qualifications for that job,' Texas Senator John Cornyn told reporters of Pulte. 

Hill Democrats have not hesitated to lambast the Pulte pick, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer calling him a 'Trump political puppet' and a 'partisan thug.'

Senator Elizabeth Warren lamented Pulte's lack of national security experience, asking sarcastically on X, 'What could go wrong?'

In the same hearing Wednesday, Bessent also mocked Senator Ron Wyden over allegations that his son had ties to deceased pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

The Treasury Secretary has earned a fiery reputation for conflict with Trump officials and allies.

The Daily Mail exclusively reported in April that Bessent got into a 'heated argument' with Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick last year, though representatives from both men denied the altercation.

Bessent also found himself in an expletive-laden shouting match with Elon Musk in the White House last year, according to Axios, with one witness saying the men thought 'it was WWE in the hall of the West Wing.'

The Daily Mail has reached out to Pulte for comment.