Trump plan for Musk-led efficiency commission could give CEO influence over rules for his work, wealth

Billionaire Elon Musk will head a government efficiency commission with a vast remit if Donald Trump is elected US president, potentially putting him in position to change the rules for corporate America, including the wide swath of industries in which his companies compete.

Trump on Thursday announced the plan, including Musk's role, and said he wanted to see recommendations for "drastic reforms," starting with hunting down fraud and improper payments, that would target "the entire federal government." 

The commission would put Musk, who leads rocket company SpaceX, electric carmaker Tesla, technology companies X and xAI and several others, a chance to plan the slimmer government Republicans often advocate, but could see him making rules that directly affect his own work and wealth.

Musk repeatedly suggested creating a government efficiency commission in a public conversation with Trump on social media platform X in August, saying that government spending should be trimmed to a sensible level and that Musk himself was willing to help. Trump in the conversation responded that Musk was "the greatest cutter" of jobs.

Presidential commissions have been created on a number of topics, such as when President Joe Biden created one to examine the idea of reforming the Supreme Court, said Nikolas Guggenberger, an assistant professor of law at University of Houston Law Center, whose work focuses on antitrust, law and technology. But Musk's significant relationships with the US government, worth billions of dollars, make it a different matter.

"He has a large company that sells electric vehicles, he has a large company that sells satellites, he has a social media platform. In all those areas, you can imagine advice being tainted by the fact that he has strong economic interests," Guggenberger said.


Reuters