Musk Factor: Tesla’s Boss Is Exerting His Growing Influence And Putting His ‘A-Team’ In Trump 2.0
Elon Musk’s role in delivering the US presidency for Donald Trump has given the world’s richest man a unique opportunity to reshape the federal government by placing his acolytes and allies inside the incoming administration. The billionaire’s influence continues after the election, with him joining Trump during a call with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, president of Ukraine, on Wednesday to discuss the war there. Now Musk is preparing to wield new power in Washington having been promised a wide remit as head of a new Department of Government Efficiency. He has spoken of slashing $2tn from the US budget and firing hundreds of thousands from a “vast bureaucracy” while eliminating regulations he blames for stifling innovation. Musk’s advisory role will be structured to ensure he keeps control of companies such as Tesla, X, SpaceX, xAI and his brain-chip company Neuralink, said people familiar with the preparations. Instead, he aims to exert power by installing longtime deputies, engineering experts, financial backers and ideological partners at government agencies. Musk Factor: Tesla’s Boss Is Exerting His Growing Influence And Putting His ‘A-Team’ In Trump 2.0
