President Donald Trump suggested that military force represents the "ultimate intervention" available for addressing turmoil in the bond market, a remark that left CNN anchor Abby Phillip visibly baffled on air.

On CNN NewsNight, Phillip aired footage of Trump fielding reporters' questions about Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's bond market intervention. Bessent more than doubled the volume of U.S. bonds the department plans to buy back after yields climbed steadily since the start of the Iran war, as Mediaite reported. Buybacks are one of Treasury's standing market tools: the department has conducted regular repurchase operations since 2024, buying back older outstanding securities to support trading liquidity and manage its cash position.

Asked whether he had directed Bessent to step into the market, Trump said, "Not at all, no."

"He's a very capable man. He wanted to do it. He's very good at it. He has a good touch, very good natural touch for the bonds and interest," the president said.

Bessent came to the job from a long career in markets, having founded the macro hedge fund Key Square Group before his confirmation as Treasury secretary in January 2025.

When another reporter asked whether he had considered "another type of intervention," Trump gave an unusual response.

"We have many types of intervention," Trump said. "The ultimate intervention is our military. And if we have to use that, we will."

According to Mediaite, the remark stopped Phillip cold as she struggled to make sense of it.

"Not sure what that's about," she said. "He's going to sic the military on the bond market. What is he talking about?"

MeidasTouch reporter Adam Mockler admitted he was equally stumped, saying, "Uh, I don't know, honestly." Trump offered no further detail in the exchange about what a military response to the bond market would involve.

Higher yields raise borrowing costs across the economy and force the government to pay more interest on its debt, Mediaite noted. Even so, Trump has bristled at positive economic data, arguing days earlier that good news undercuts his push for lower rates.

"Every time I hear our country is doing well I say, 'That's too bad because they lift up interest rates,'" Trump said Wednesday. "They should drop interest rates because it means we have a strong country."

Interest rate decisions in the United States rest with the Federal Reserve, an independent central bank, and Trump's public calls for lower rates have been a recurring feature of his economic messaging.

Trump went on to tout the country's borrowing position.

"It's all based on credit, meaning good credit. And we have the best credit, and we pay off the debt very easily, very quickly," he said.