The Magnet and the Mockery: Scott Bessent, Xi Jinping, and the Return of American Leverage
By Maria Grasmick
In the glare of geopolitical theater, one image now etches itself into the memory of 2025: Scott Bessent, America’s Secretary of the Treasury, standing poised with a silver platter — not bearing food, but a magnet. A magnet so powerful, it pulled rare earth elements across oceans, supply chains, and decades of Chinese dominance.
And across from him? Xi Jinping, caught mid-laugh. But behind that smug grin lies unease. It is the laugh of a man watching the edges of his grip crack.
Part I: Who is Scott Bessent?
Once a discreet hedge fund executive and Trump ally, Scott Bessent now commands one of the most critical levers in the global financial order. Appointed Treasury Secretary during Trump’s second term, Bessent arrived with the demeanor of a Wall Street priest and the instincts of a global tactician. He did not come to manage decline. He came to reverse it. And he is good looking!
His mission? Reindustrialize America, cut China out of key supply lines, and reassert national sovereignty in financial markets. The symbol of that agenda? Rare earth elements.
Part II: The Rare Earth War
Rare earths, or RARE ERFS, as some people call it..because it is so mysterious.. names like Neodymium, Dysprosium, and Praseodymium ( I put on the rocks) are not just obscure minerals. They are the skeleton key to modernity: powering electric vehicles, fighter jets, wind turbines, and smartphones. For years, China held over 80% of the global refining capacity. It was a chokehold. It was power.
Then came the tariffs. Bessent, backed by Trump, proposed a 100% tariff threat on Chinese tech and minerals. Critics scoffed. Wall Street trembled. But Beijing blinked.
Part III: The South Carolina Magnet
In November 2025, a rare earth processing plant opened in South Carolina — the first of its kind in the U.S. in decades. Bessent appeared at the opening, not as a ribbon-cutter, but as a signal to the world: America would no longer beg for the materials it once mined itself. We would extract, refine, and manufacture on our own soil.
In his words: “The mere threat of 100% tariffs brought China to the table.”
Part IV: Xi’s Nervous Laughter
What followed was almost cinematic. At the APEC summit in Busan, cameras captured Xi Jinping laughing , the photos were released. He is not supposed to be depicted laughing to his people, Instead they always see him as serious. But I like this light side and crossed it with this political cartoon I drew.
In the cartoon, I depicted Xi grinning while rare earth rocks float across the frame — sucked into Bessent’s magnet ..he mentions, ( in the MSM article I used as a source, see Ko-Fi) His line? “Haha… we gave you those rare earths, Mr. Bessent!”
But it wasn’t comedy. It was a mask. China had lost control of a key leverage point, and Bessent had walked away with the advantage , yes, without firing a shot.
Part V: The Bigger Picture
This story isn’t about minerals. It’s about mindset. Under Bessent, the Treasury is not a passive branch of government. It is a battlefield. His doctrine is clear: leverage is power. Tariffs are tools. And industrial sovereignty is non-negotiable.
Xi can laugh. But Bessent holds the magnet.
Thank you for reading.
Maria Grasmick
If you want to see my sources, my sketches, or what technique I used to draw these caricatures and what brushes I used, check out my KO-Fi I will post my extras there and keep my blog here just for words. That way the centerpiece is the art.