US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has revealed that he would place Tech Billionaire Elon Musk in his cabinet if elected.
Trump, who has received endorsement from Musk, said he will establish a government efficiency commission headed by Elon Musk if he wins the Nov. 5 election, during a wide-ranging speech in which he laid out his economic vision for the country.
Speaking at the New York Economic Club, the former president also pledged to slash corporate tax rates for companies that manufacture domestically, establish “low-tax” zones on federal lands where construction companies would be encouraged to build new homes, and start a sovereign wealth fund.
Trump also revealed that Musk had agreed to head the body. Trump did not detail how such a commission would operate, besides saying it would develop a plan to eliminate “fraud and improper payments” within six months of being formed.
“I will create a government efficiency commission tasked with conducting a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government,” Trump told an audience that included Trump’s former treasury secretary, Steve Mnuchin, and financiers Scott Bessent and John Paulson.
Musk said on an Aug. 19 podcast that he had held conversations with the former president about the commission and that he would be interested in serving on it.
“I look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises,” the Tesla chief wrote on X on Thursday. “No pay, no title, no recognition is needed.”
Also, during his speech, Trump reiterated his plan to cut the corporate tax rate to 15% from 21%, but only for companies that manufacture domestically.
He also said he would open up federal land to homebuilding in a bid to drive down housing costs.
These new housing zones would be “low-tax” and “low-regulation,” Trump said, without elaborating.
Trump added that he would ban mortgages for migrants living illegally in California, after asserting without evidence that they were driving up housing costs.