Who Is Likely To Join The 'Trump 2.0' Administration?
AInvestThursday, Nov 7, 2024 7:34 am ET
2min read
TSLA --

With the U.S. election finally concluded with Trump's victory, the market is not only concerned about the policies Trump will implement after taking office but also curious about how the key positions in the U.S. government will be reshuffled.

Which Role Will Musk Take?

Trump had previously promised that if he won in November, he would let Musk serve as the head of a new Government Efficiency Committee. Musk's leadership group will propose suggestions to Trump on cutting federal spending.

Musk responded by saying that if Trump wins the U.S. presidential election this year, he could help cut the federal budget by at least $2 trillion, fundamentally reshaping government spending. However, Musk did not provide details on how to achieve such a scale of spending cuts.

Analysts pointed out that if Musk takes on more government work, it might reduce his working hours at Tesla, what this means for the electric car manufacturer remains to be seen.

Federal Reserve

Powell's term as chairman will end in May 2026. Trump has indicated that he will not reappoint Powell and has often criticized him. According to multiple media reports, the name most often mentioned for the position of Federal Reserve chairman is Kevin Hassett, who served as the chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers during Trump's first term.

Kevin Hassett

Several sources close to Trump's campaign team, including Trump's senior economic adviser and Key Square Group hedge fund CEO Scott Bessent, have said that Hassett maybe Trump's final choice for the chairman.

Scott Bessent

In addition, former Federal Reserve Governor and current Stanford University Hoover Institution Researcher Kevin Warsh, and Ronald Reagan's economic advisor Arthur Laffer are also seen as potential candidates for the position.

Trump has previously stated that he believes the president should have a say in the Federal Reserve's interest rate policy and hinted that policymakers lowered interest rates by 0.5 percentage points in September for political reasons. Although he later clarified that he was not trying to order the Federal Reserve to do anything, he should have the right to comment on the direction of interest rates.

The Federal Reserve chairman is usually named by the president, and formally appointed by the Senate. With the Republican Party controlling the Senate, there should be no obstacles to Trump's choice.

Treasury Department

The candidates for Trump 2.0 Treasury Secretary will include Scott Bessent and American hedge fund billionaire John Paulson. They both support Trump's plan to impose tariffs on imported products but see it as an important negotiating tool.

Bessent previously stated that he supports a strong dollar, which is a long-term policy of the United States, and said that Trump supports the dollar as a reserve currency. He also previewed Trump's economic script for the second term on Wednesday and listed plans to break regulatory and energy dominance.

He also stated that the top priority will be to stop the Inflation Reduction Act, especially the provision of a $7,500 tax credit for electric vehicles.

Paulson, a long-term donor to Trump's presidential campaign, previously stated that he would work with Tesla CEO Musk to formulate measures to significantly reduce federal spending.

John Paulson

The staunch supporter of Trump said that his top priority is to extend Trump's expiring 2017 tax cuts, followed by working with Musk to cut federal spending, especially canceling the subsidies for green energy in the Inflation Reduction Act passed during the Biden administration.

Department of Energy

According to Mark Menezes, who served as Deputy Secretary of Energy during Trump's first term, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum did not seek re-election but is most likely to lead the Department of Energy in Trump's second term.

Menezes, currently the chairman and CEO of the United States Energy Association, said that choosing Burgum makes sense because North Dakota is an oil and gas producing state, and the recent trend has been to have former governors take on this position.

It is understood that former Texas Governor Rick Perry held the position during Trump's first term, and former Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm is the current Secretary of Energy under President Biden.

At the same time, Menezes himself, as well as Dan Brouillette, who served as Trump's Secretary of Energy after Perry stepped down in December 2019, are also seen as potential candidates.

Disclaimer: the above is a summary showing certain market information. AInvest is not responsible for any data errors, omissions or other information that may be displayed incorrectly as the data is derived from a third party source. Communications displaying market prices, data and other information available in this post are meant for informational purposes only and are not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of any security. Please do your own research when investing. All investments involve risk and the past performance of a security, or financial product does not guarantee future results or returns. Keep in mind that while diversification may help spread risk, it does not assure a profit, or protect against loss in a down market.