The Trump Organization announced its ethics plan for Donald Trump's second term.
The president-elect's private company said Trump would be walled off from day-to-day duties.
Unlike in 2017, the company is leaving the door more open to some foreign transactions.
The Trump Organization on Friday announced that President-elect Donald Trump will be walled off from the day-to-day management of his privately held company.
Unlike in 2017, Trump's company is not agreeing to a blanket stop on new foreign business transactions. Instead, a five-page ethics plan calls only for a limit on transactions with foreign governments.
"The Company will not enter into any new material transactions or contracts with a foreign government, except for Ordinary Course Transactions," says a copy of the plan, obtained by CNBC.
The language would seem to allow business dealings like the Trump Organization's work with LIV Golf, a competitor to the PGA financed by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, to continue. LIV is set to return to Trump National Doral in Florida for an April tournament.
Noah Bookbinder, president of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said the company's plan was little more than a rehash of Trump's first-term ethics policies.
"We saw during the first four years of the Trump presidency, a tremendous of the mixing of the business of the presidency with all kinds of interests, companies, people bring business to business Donald Trump seemingly as a way to kind of curry favor with him," Bookbinder told Business Insider. "What we're seeing this time is Donald Trump potentially taking the same ethics guidelines that didn't work during his first presidency and then dialing them back some."
Many policies outlined in a five-page document mirror Trump's promises when he took office in 2016. One of the main similarities is that the Trump Organization has again appointed an outside ethics advisor. Bill Burck, co-managing Partner of Quinn Emanuel and a former George W. Bush DOJ official, will serve as the advisor.
According to the plan, Burck will review acquisitions over $10 million, leases involving more than 40,000 sq. ft., and new debts of more than $10 million. He will also review deals with the US government as well as with state and local governments.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on the ethics plan. The Journal also reported that the Trump Organization wants to reclaim its former Washington, DC, hotel. Congressional Democrats sued Trump when he was in office, alleging he was partly violating theΒ US Constitution's emoluments clauseΒ by renting out hotel rooms to foreign governments. In 2021, the Supreme Court threw out the remaining emoluments-related lawsuits.
Trump has significant assets outside of his eponymous firm. He has a significant stake in Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of his social media platform Truth Social. Trump's shares are a large part of the reason why his net worth is now estimated to be over $6 billion.
Elon Musk said on Wednesday that saving $2 trillion would be a "best-case outcome" for DOGE.
Musk said DOGE had a "good shot" at saving $1 trillion, which would still be an "epic outcome."
The Tesla chief had previously suggested his commission would save at least $2 trillion.
Elon Musk cast doubt on his previous promise that Donald Trump's "Department of Government Efficiency" would save the government $2 trillion.
"I think we'll try for $2 trillion. I think that's, like, the best-case outcome," Musk told the political strategist Mark Penn during a Wednesday-evening chat on X.
In October, Musk argued that DOGE would save the government at least $2 trillion. Some federal budget experts questioned the possibility of making such significant cuts, especially given that Trump has promised not to touch programs like Social Security and Medicare.
"But I do think that you kind of have to have some overage," Musk told Penn. He added that he thought the commission had a "good shot" at saving $1 trillion.
He continued: "If we can drop the budget deficit from $2 trillion to $1 trillion and free up the economy to have additional growth such that the output of goods and services keeps pace with the increase in the money supply, then there will be no inflation. So that, I think, would be an epic outcome."
Musk did not specify in October which cuts he planned to make to achieve that target, which would involve slashing government spending by nearly a third; the federal government spent $6.75 trillion in the 2024 fiscal year.
Musk told Penn on Wednesday that he still thought the government was "a very target-rich environment for saving money."
"It's like being in a room full of targets," he added. "Like, you could close your eyes, and you can't miss."
Republican lawmakers have moved quickly to support DOGE's efforts. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia are set to lead their chambers' work with the panel.
The Tesla CEO's influence has soared since Trump's victory. In recent weeks Musk helped kill sweeping legislation to fund the federal government, briefly increasing the risk of a shutdown.
Trump has waved off concerns about Musk's political moves in Europe. The Tesla CEO has repeatedly criticized British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and called for the Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, a Trump ally, to step aside. Musk also endorsed Germany's far-right AfD party ahead of elections next month; top leaders have pushed back.
"You mean where he likes people that tended to be conservative? I don't know the people," Trump told reporters during a wide-ranging press conference on Tuesday. "I can say Elon's doing a good job. Very smart guy."
Musk and Trump's transition team did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
Trump is set to be sworn into office on January 20.
Donald Trump said that Mark Zuckerberg may have taken notice of his threats.
The president-elect previously threatened to jail the Meta CEO for life.
Zuckerberg announced Tuesday that his company will no longer partner with third-party fact-checkers.
President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday praised Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg for changing how it moderates political content on its three major social media platforms.
Trump, who previously threatened Zuckerberg with life in prison, said his comments might have led to the announcement.
"Probably," Trump said when asked if Zuckerberg is "directly responding to the threats you've made to him in the past."
Zuckerberg and Trump once had a frosty relationship, but both sides appear to be warming up.
"Honestly, I think they have come a long way, Meta, Facebook" Trump told reporters during a wide-ranging news conference.
Zuckerberg made the major shift on Tuesday, announcing that his company will no longer partner with third-party fact-checkers and will relax moderation policies on topics like gender and immigration.
"We've reached a point where it's just too many mistakes and too much censorship," Zuckerberg said in a video posted on Facebook. "The recent elections also feel like a cultural tipping point toward once again prioritizing speech. So we are going to get back to our roots, focus on reducing mistakes, simplifying our policies, and restoring free expression on our platforms."
Joel Kaplan, recently promoted to lead Meta's global policy team, outlined the announcement during an interview on "Fox and Friends," Fox News' morning show that Trump has long watched.
"There is a real opportunity here, with President Trump coming into office, with his commitment to free expression, for us to get back to those values," Kaplan said.
Trump said he saw Kaplan's comments and called the former Bush White House official "very impressive."
Zuckerberg recently dined at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, part of a larger wave of tech CEOs hoping to reset relations with the incoming administration. Meta is also donating $1 million to Trump's inauguration.
Zuckerberg and Trump haven't always gotten along.
Trump's first administration and several states teamed up in 2020 on a major antitrust lawsuit against Facebook. In 2021, Trump, then-a former president, sued Facebook and other platforms for banning him in the wake of the January 6, 2021 Capitol riot. Trump and his allies have also been highly critical of Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan's charitable giving ahead of the 2020 election to help local election officials deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We are watching him closely," Trump wrote in his book earlier this year in a section about Zuckerberg," and if he does anything illegal this time he will spend the rest of his life in prison β as will others who cheat in the 2024 Presidential Election."
Before the presidential election, Zuckerberg announced he would not make any donations to election officials again, and he called Trump a "badass" after the president-elect survived an assassination attempt in July.
A representative for Meta didn't immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.
Trump wouldn't rule out using military force to take Greenland and retake the Panama Canal.
The president-elect made the remarks during a major press conference just days before his 2nd term.
Denmark has emphatically stated that Greenland isn't for sale.
President-elect Donald Trump isn't ruling out using military force in an effort to gain control of Greenland and retake control of the Panama Canal.
During a Tuesday press conference, Trump was asked if he'd assure the world that he wouldn't use military or economic coercion to secure the sovereign territory and the vital waterway, respectively.
The president-elect in his response reinforced the critical economic importance that he sees in Greenland and the Panama Canal.
"I can't assure you," he said. "I'm not going to commit to that. It might be that you'll have to do something."
Q: Can you assure the world that as you try to get control of areas like Greenland or Panama you are not gonna use military or economic coercion?
TRUMP: No. I can't assure you. I'm not going to commit to that. It might be that you'll have to do something. pic.twitter.com/YbscfcOgmH
"We need Greenland for national security purposes," he continued. "People don't even know if Denmark has any legal right to it. But if they do, they should give it up."
Late last year, Trump spoke about possibly taking back control of the Panama Canal from Panama as well as his wish to secure Greenland from Denmark. He also floated buying Greenland in 2019.
Trump during Tuesday's press conference also threatened to "tariff Denmark at a very high level" if the country didn't give up control of Greenland.
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen of Denmark earlier on Tuesday said that "Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders," adding that the strategic Arctic island is "not for sale."
Greenland is a Danish colony, though it has had self-rule since 1979. Greenland could declare its independence but would need to hold a formal vote first. Greenlandic Prime Minister MΓΊte Egede said recently that it was "time to take the next step for our country," hinting at the possibility of a referendum this year.
Shortly after, Trump responded on Truth Social by stating, "We'll see about that," and then posted a photo with the caption, "Welcome to the United States Canal!"
Business Insider has reached out to representatives of Trump for comment.
Republicans nearly unanimously reelected Mike Johnson as speaker of the House.
It avoids what could've been an early embarrassment for Trump and the GOP.
After winning, Johnson pledged to "drastically cut back the size and scope of government."
In a stunning turn of events on Friday, Rep. Mike Johnson of Louisiana was reelected as speaker of the House on the first ballot, avoiding what could have been an early embarrassment for Republicans ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration.
It didn't come without some trouble.
Three House Republicans β Reps. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Ralph Norman of South Carolina, and Keith Self of Texas β initially voted for candidates other than Johnson to serve as speaker, denying him the 218-vote majority necessary to win. Several other Republicans withheld their votes until the end of the roll call, though they ultimately voted for Johnson.
Republicans held the vote open as Johnson met with Norman and Self, and after 45 minutes, both men switched their votes β allowing him to clinch the speakership on the first ballot.
"Is the preference to have it sail through? Yes," Norman told BI in a brief interview before voting began on Friday. "We'll see how it goes."
It wasn't immediately clear as of publication how Johnson had regained the two lawmakers' support. Massie, an idiosyncratic libertarian, was the sole Republican who did not switch his vote to Johnson.
Before the vote, Johnson wrote a lengthy post on X in which he pledged to create a "working group comprised of independent experts" to work with Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy's "Department of Government Efficiency," or DOGE, to implement spending cuts. He also requested committees undertake "aggressive" reviews of government spending.
The American peopleΒ have demanded an end to the status quo, and a return to fiscal sanity.Β Thatβs why the citizens of our great country gave President Trump the White House and Republican control of both chambers of Congress.Β If we donβt follow through on our campaign promise forβ¦
Johnson's problem wasn't Trump β the president-elect endorsed him earlier this week. The speaker-to-be also had the support of Musk, who caused trouble for Johnson last month by helping to tank a government funding bill.
Instead, it was a group of hardline Republicans, many of whom are part of the House Freedom Caucus. Ahead of the vote, several of them had signaled their dissatisfaction with Johnson, particularly his frequent reliance on Democrats to pass major government funding bills and his decision in April of last year to allow more than $60 billion in Ukraine aid to pass the House.
With all but a handful of Republicans pledging to support the incoming speaker, it appeared that long-festering wounds within the conference β some of which were ripped open when Kevin McCarthy was deposed as speaker last year β might be reopened.
"I have a feeling some folks wake up in the morning to see what confusion and chaos they can cause every day," Republican Rep. Greg Murphy of North Carolina told BI.
Trump and his allies argued that GOP unity was crucial for enacting the party's agenda, which includes passing major bills to address border security, immigration, and energy policy, raising the debt ceiling, extending the Trump tax cuts, funding the government, and eventually pursuing sweeping cuts to federal spending at the recommendation of DOGE.
"We're going to protect our industries from one-sided trade deals, and we're going to bring overseas investments back to American shores," Johnson said in a speech after claiming the gavel. "We'll defeat the harmful effects of inflation, and we'll make life affordable again for America's hard-working people."
Johnson also made a nod toward DOGE, saying that Congress would "drastically cut back the size and scope of government."
"In coordination with President Trump and his administration, we are going to create a leaner, faster, and more efficient federal workforce," Johnson said. "We need to do that."
'It's their responsibility to govern'
Despite avoiding a complete mess on Friday, Republicans will face plenty of challenges enacting the legislative pieces of Trump's 100-day agenda.
For one, Republicans will have a one-vote majority until at least April, when special elections will be held to fill vacancies caused by Trump's appointments and former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida's decision to leave the House.
The GOP is expected to try to ram through at least one party-line bill, using the special procedural power known as budget reconciliation, which allows them to pass bills through the Senate without the usual 60-vote requirement.
Republicans aren't entirely in agreement on how they'll use it. Senate Majority Leader John Thune wants to move two separate bills, one devoted to border security and defense spending and another later in the year that would extend Trump's tax cuts. Meanwhile, some House Republicans, particularly Ways and Means Committee Chairman Rep. Jason Smith, want the party to move only one massive bill.
To further complicate matters, reconciliation bills should only deal with fiscal matters, and it remains to be seen what immigration-related policies would be allowed.
Beyond their ambitious policy goals, Republicans will also have to raise or suspend the debt ceiling or risk default likely sometime later this summer. Many conservatives have ideological reservations about raising the debt ceiling and have historically voted against doing so. Last month, Trump unsuccessfully sought to pressure Republicans to raise the debt ceiling before he took office.
There's also the question of how Republicans will carry out more basic tasks, including funding the government. Over the last two years, Johnson has frequently relied on Democratic votes to pass major funding bills.
"They're in the majority, and it's their responsibility to govern," Democratic Rep. Jim McGovern of Massachusetts told BI. "It's not my responsibility to bail them out every time they have a problem."
Despite all of these challenges, Norman β one of the original Johnson holdouts β told BI he wasn't worried about his party's agenda, pointing to the fact that his party would soon control both chambers of Congress and the presidency.
"We've got so many things to be thankful for, and to be happy about, and I am," Norman said.
Donald Trump will have a chance to leave a big imprint on the alcohol industry.
On Friday, the Biden administration moved to expand the warning on alcoholic drinks to list cancer risks.
Only Congress could force such a change, but how Trump will react remains to be seen.
Donald Trump once said that not drinking was "one of my only good traits." President Joe Biden, a fellow teetotaler, and his administration have left the president-elect an opportunity to leave a lasting imprint on the billion-dollar beverage industry.
US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on Friday released a bombshell report warning that alcohol consumption can increase cancer risk. Murthy also called for an expanded warning label on all alcoholic beverages that would include cancer risk, similar to the warning label on cigarettes.
Trump's aversion to alcohol is well documented. He was once observed toasting his fellow world leaders with Diet Coke during his presidency. Trump has said that his brother Fred's struggle with addiction led him to avoid drinking and smoking entirely. Fred Trump Jr. died in 1981 at the age of 42, the result of a heart attack attributed to alcoholism.
"I had a brother, Fred. Great guy, best-looking guy, best personality, much better than mine," Trump said during a 2018 news conference. "But he had a problem. He had a problem with alcohol, and he would tell me, 'Don't drink. Don't drink.' He was substantially older, and I listened to him and I respected (him)."
It remains to be seen how Trump will move forward. A spokesperson for the Trump transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
The president-elect has generally opposed more stringent regulations. Trump's first administration also rejected an advisory committee's advice to urge men to cut back on alcohol consumption. Adding warning labels to alcoholic beverages would require congressional action, though Trump's support of such a measure would likely influence a more obedient GOP.
Alcohol played a major role in one of the biggest stories from Trump's first administration: the contested confirmation of now-Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
Kavanaugh said during his Senate hearing that he "liked beer," but bristled when Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota asked if he had a drinking problem.
"I watched him. I was surprised at how vocal he was about the fact that he likes beer," Trump said at the time. "This is not a man that said that he was perfect with respect to alcohol."
The former Fox News host Pete Hegseth, Trump's pick to lead the Pentagon, is also expected to face questions about his drinking during his confirmation hearings. Like Kavanaugh, Hegseth has faced allegations that his drinking habits fueled sexual misconduct. (Both men have strongly denied any wrongdoing.)
Trump has a personal stake in the discussion. His hotels and golf clubs all sell alcohol, and the Trump Organization owns a winery in Charlottesville, Virginia. And while Trump doesn't drink, that didn't stop him from once hawking his own vodka brand.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom Trump has nominated to lead the Health and Human Services Department, also doesn't drink. Kennedy has been sober for years after a highly publicized history with drugs, including a 1983 arrest for heroin possession.
There is a growing push among public-health groups for lawmakers to take a tougher approach to regulating alcohol. The industry routinely spends millions of dollars lobbying Congress.
Trump previously defended Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world's largest beer company, when some of his closest allies and supporters urged a boycott of the company in response to its brief partnership with the transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
"Anheuser-Busch is a Great American Brand that perhaps deserves a Second Chance? What do you think?" Trump wrote on Truth Social in 2023.
At the time, Trump was preparing to attend a major GOP fundraiser hosted by a top Republican lobbyist for the beverage giant.
The driver suspected of exploding a Tesla Cybertruck left a note saying that his act "was a wake up call."
Authorities identified the driver as Matthew Livelsberger, 37, of Colorado Springs.
Livelsberger had been an active-duty Army service member for nearly two decades, the US Army told BI.
The driver of the Tesla Cybertruck loaded with explosives behind Wednesday's Las Vegas blast was an active-duty US Army soldier who, a coroner said, committed suicide.
In a press release on Thursday, the Clark County coroner identified the driver as Matthew Livelsberger, a 37-year-old man from Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The coroner's report said the cause of death was the result of an intraoral gunshot wound by suicide.
Livelsberger was a master sergeant who served as a special-operations soldier, a US Army spokesperson said in a statement provided to Business Insider.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Sheriff Kevin McMahill told reporters on Thursday that the driver appeared to have died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound before the material in his truck exploded.
McMahill said authorities found a military ID and credit cards with Livelsberger's name on them inside the Cybertruck. They have also confirmed that he rented the Tesla vehicle in Denver on December 28, driving through parts of New Mexico and Arizona before reaching Las Vegas.
Spencer Evans, Special Agent in charge of the Las Vegas FBI Field Office, said the bureau has no information about any other suspects. There is no current evidence connecting Livelsberger to any terrorist organization around the world.
There is also no evidence that the Las Vegas explosion is connected with a deadly attack in New Orleans, McMahill said.
Authorities on Thursday said both Livelsberger and Shamsud-Din Jabbar, who is suspected of driving a rented truck into a crowd of people in Louisana, both served in the military and spent time together at what was then known as Fort Bragg in North Carolina. Bragg, now known as Fort Liberty, is one of the nation's largest military bases. There is no evidence that Livelsberger and Jabbar were in the same unit.
The LVMPD said in a press release on Friday that two phones were also discovered inside the Cybertruck. After detectives gained access to one of the phones, they are said to have found two "letters" that "include grievances regarding political, social, cultural, personal, and other issues."
In one of the letters, authorities said Livelsberger wrote: "This was not a terrorist attack, it was a wake up call."
He added that the US was "terminally ill and headed toward collapse" and that he had acted in order to "cleanse" his mind of the "brothers I've lost" and to relieve himself of "the burden of the lives I took."
"There may be a lot more information that we recover that explains either more or shows a change in mindset at different times," LVMPD Assistant Sheriff Dori Koren said at a press conference on Friday.
A military background
Livelsberger served in active duty from January 2006 to March 2011, the Army spokesperson said. After a stint in the National Guard and service in the Army Reserve, Livelsberger returned to active duty in December 2012.
"US Army Special Operations Command can confirm Livelsberger was assigned to the command and on approved leave at the time of his death," the Army spokesperson said. "USASOC is in full cooperation with federal and state law enforcement agencies, but as a matter of policy, will not comment on ongoing investigations."
Livelsberger served in the Army for more than 19 years. A military official told BI he was an operations sergeant assigned to the 10th Special Forces Group in Germany but was recently on leave at home in Colorado.
The official added that Livelsberger had a clean record, "by all accounts was great," and that this would have been "out of character" for him.
The FBI said it was searching a home in Colorado Springs in connected with the incident.
"FBI Denver personnel and specialized teams will be on-site for several hours," the bureau said in a statement to BI. "This activity is related to the explosion in Las Vegas on Wednesday; due to the ongoing nature of the investigation, no further information will be provided out of Denver."
The Cybertruck had been filled with firework-style mortars and canisters of camping fuel, authorities said Wednesday. The driver was the only person killed. Seven other people were injured.
The vehicle explosion occurred hours after an attacker drove a rented pickup truck through crowds on Bourbon Street in New Orleans. That attack left 15 people dead, including the attacker, and injured dozens more.
Both vehicles were rented using the Turo app. Authorities in Louisana on Thursday also said the New Orleans attack appeared to be unrelated to the Cybertruck explosion.
On X, Tesla CEO Elon Musk praised the Cybertruck for limiting the destruction from the blast. McMahill said Musk has dispatched a team of Tesla officials to assist with the Las Vegas investigation.
Update: The first paragraph of this article has been updated to reflect that the driver of the vehicle containing explosives involved in the Las Vegas blast committed suicide, a coroner said.
Additional reporting by Ryan Pickrell and Kevin Tan.
Elon Musk may receive the lion's share of the attention, but he's far from the only billionaire in Trump's orbit who has benefited from government contracts.
"This Trump administration is just chocked full of billionaires, millionaires, and lobbyists," Craig Holman, a lobbyist for government watchdog Public Citizen, recently told Business Insider.
Trump tapped private equity billionaire Stephen Feinberg to become his second-highest-ranking official at the Pentagon. Feinberg's firm, Cerberus Capital Management, has significant interests in military defense contractors, which, as deputy director of defense, could pose a conflict given that the Pentagon's No. 2 is typically responsible for the Defense Department's massive budget.
Earlier this year, Cerberus acquired a controlling interest in M1 Support Services, an aircraft maintenance contractor. In fiscal year 2024 alone, M1 has been awarded over $630.7 million in federal contracts, according to USASpending.gov contract data. Cerberus also has a large stake in Navistar Defense, a specialized military vehicle manufacturer. In 2021, Navistar paid a $50 million fine to resolve a complaint that accused the company of inflating the prices of mine-resistant vehicles it sold to the US Marine Corps from 2007 to 2012, before Feinberg's firm bought a 70% stake in 2018.
Musk has an even wider portfolio of responsibilities. Unlike Feinberg, the Tesla CEO is set to remain outside the Trump administration β meaning the world's richest man would not be subject to the potential divestment full-time administration officials may be asked to do.
"He definitely has a vision for humanity and he views himself as a world historic figure, and he knows his wealth is necessary to fulfilling his vision," Jeff Hauser, executive director of the Revolving Door Project, a public interest group, told Business Insider earlier this month. "So I am frightened by what government by people like that looks like."
All of Trump's appointees who enter the government will have to comply with the criminal conflict of interest law. Congress did not apply that law to the president or vice president, in part due to constitutional concerns.
Congressional Democrats have raised concern about Musk's ties to China. He called for the expulsion of Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the top Democrat on the powerful House Appropriations Committee, after she and other liberal lawmakers questioned whether Musk helped kill a sweeping government funding bill due to its inclusion of restrictions on certain US investments in China.
Trump told Time Magazine that he's seen Musk put the country ahead of his financial interests.
"I think he's one of the very few people that would have the credibility to do it, but he puts the country before, and I've seen it, before he puts his company," Trump said.
In response to questions about potential conflicts of interest, Brian Hughes, a Trump-Vance Transition spokesperson, said in a statement to Business Insider "All nominees and appointees will comply with the ethical obligations of their respective agencies and offices."
Divestment can be difficult to navigate. In 2017, Florida Panthers owner Vincent Viola, a billionaire, withdrew from consideration to become Trump's first Army secretary. According to The New York Times, Viola had too much difficulty untangling his financial interests.
Others have been able to broker deals allowing them to cash out early. Former Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson had to work out a special $180 million retirement package with the oil giant because some of his holdings included restricted shares that hadn't been fully vested. Goldman Sachs accelerated its payout to Gary Cohn, who left the firm to become Trump's chief economic advisor, leaving him with a roughly $285 million exit package. In order to entice talent out of the private sector, the government also allows officials to defer some tax liabilities when they are directed to sell shares or other assets. Tillerson and Cohn both used this perk. So too has current Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.
Government watchdogs have long expressed unease about top officials entering the government with private-sector ties.
Biden advisors' ties to BlackRock, the world's largest asset manager, were the subject of significant attention during the 2020 transition. Deputy Treasury Secretary Wally Adeyemo was once interim chief of staff to Larry Fink. Brian Deese, who was Biden's top economic aide, led BlackRock's sustainable investing before joining the Biden administration. Adeyemo agreed to recuse himself from any potential BlackRock-related business until he sold off his interests. As a political appointee, Deese's ethics agreement is not public information, though ethics-focused groups previously asked the White House to disclose it. (The White House did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment about Deese's agreement. He left the administration last year.)
It remains to be seen whether the president-elect will impose additional ethics requirements as he did shortly after taking office in 2017. Trump's first cabinet was the wealthiest in modern history. His incoming team is likely to be even richer.
The influx of billionaires extends from the cabinet down through US ambassadors. So far, Trump's tapped at least two additional billionaires to represent the US abroad, Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta and investment banker Warren Stephens, to be US ambassadors. And that list doesn't even include the likes of Musk, who has Trump's attention without the hassle of selling off his vast interests.
"He is going to have the ear of President Trump anyway, even though he's serving in an advisory capacity," Holman said of Musk.
Donald Trump wants the next GOP senate leader to give him greater power to staff vacancies.
Trump wants to use the president's recess appointment power in a major way.
Not every conservative is convinced this is a wise move, though Elon Musk is on board.
President-elect Donald Trump isn't backing down from his threat to ram through cabinet nominees over the potential objections of his fellow Republicans.
In a recent interview with Time Magazine, Trump did not rule out using recess appointments to get his picks into powerful posts, particularly if former Fox News host Pete Hegseth or Robert F. Kennedy Jr. see their confirmation chances further imperiled.
"I really don't care how they get them approved, as long as they get them approved," Trump said when asked if he would use recess appointments.
Trump and Elon Musk want Republicansto help him use the special procedure called recess appointments, which would allow him to install Cabinet appointees and even a Supreme Court justice without a single vote.In theory, Trump's push for broad recess appointment power could allow him to disregard the process entirely β meaning that more than 1,200 positions requiring Senate confirmation could be filled without even a confirmation hearing.
Some Republicans, including Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, signaled their opposition to Trump's suggestion. But as the president-elect approaches his inauguration, he's repeatedly refused to take the possibility of a major showdown off the table.
"It's just been made so explicit and used as a strategy in and of itself that even though former presidents made recess appointments, they didn't say this part, and there wasn't widespread fear about what it means and why they are using it now," Casey Burgat, the director of the Legislative Affairs Program at George Washington University's Graduate School of Political Management told Business Insider.
Like Trump, Musk is a big believer in flexing the recess appointment power.
The world's richest man wrote on X just after the election that without them, it would be "impossible to enact the change demanded by the American people, which is utterly unacceptable."
The fight over Trump's picks is different now.
Former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida pulled out of contention to be the next Attorney General after it became clear that his fellow Republicans would likely oppose his nomination. Since Gaetz's withdrawal, Trump's allies have made it clear they will tolerate little other dissent.
Trump supporters swarmed Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa after she expressed concerns about Hegseth. Ernst, a veteran and a sexual assault survivor, expressed concerns about Hegseth as he faced allegations of sexual assault. Hegseth has denied any wrongdoing and also pushed back on reports that he drank excessively.
Besides Hegseth, Kennedy has also faced some concerns. Sen. Mitch McConnell, who led the Senate GOP for decades, said that Trump's nominees should "steer clear" of efforts to undermine proven cures. While McConnell's statement did not name Kennedy specifically, it came after a report that one of his advisors had previously tried to get approval polio vaccine withdrawn. McConnell, who had polio as a child, said in the statement that "the real miracle" of modern medicine was not the treatments that allowed him to survive but the development of a vaccine that has spared others from his fate.
Many of Trump's other picks, including former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who replaced Gaetz, look to be on the path to easy confirmation.
If that holds, Trump may not be forced to find other ways to get his nominees into their respective positions.
Why Trump wants this power.
Trump could get his choices confirmed with just 50 votes, thanks to Vice President-elect JD Vance's tie-breaking power. Since Republicans will hold 53 seats, Democrats can't stop a nomination on their own. However, they can force Republicans to grind it out.
In his push for recess appointment power, Trump has argued it was about ensuring he could staff up in a timely manner.
According to the Center for Presidential Transition, it took Trump twice as long on average to get his nominees approved during his first three years in office (115 days) than it did in Ronald Reagan's presidency (56.4) days. Through late November 2023, it took President Joe Biden roughly 109.6 days on average. The center also found that while the Senate filibuster is part of the reason for delays, even complete control of Congress hasn't sped things up.
Not everyone is convinced that time is Trump's sole motivation, particularly when many of his early selections illustrate how much he will elevate controversial choices like Gaetz and Kennedy.
"From the president's perspective, I suppose he would see this as a shortcut to take his favorite list of appointees and put them in for temporary appointments," Sarah Binder, a senior fellow at Brookings, told Business Insider.
Trump can't flex this power by himself.
The Senate would need to vote to adjourn. As incoming-Senate Majority Leader John Thune has said, it's difficult to foresee a scenario where GOP senators vote down a nominee only to vote in favor of a recess.
The Constitution also requires the House to approve the Senate breaking for over three days. A 2014 Supreme Court decision held that the Senate would need to recess for at least 10 days.
There's even a way for Trump to avoid the House's need to sign off on a lengthy break. Under Article II of the Constitution, Trump has the power to force an adjournment if the House and Senate are divided on what to do.
Time is the only true limit on recess appointments.
Officials installed via recess appointment can only serve until Congress' next session. If Trump uses this power immediately upon taking office, officials or judges could only stay through the next Senate session, in January 2027.
Otherwise, there is virtually nothing Senate Democrats could do to stop the process. Adjournment votes can't be meaningfully filibustered.
Some Republicans senators have made clear they wouldn't like recess appointments for high-level nominees. Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina told reporters that President Obama pushed the enevelope on recess appointments, but even he didn't go that far.
"Not for a cabinet-level position," Tillis said to reporters in late November. "That should absolutely be off the table and, quite honestly, any serious candidate for a cabinet-level position I would really have to wonder if they would really want it or be willing to accept it under recess appointments."
Recess appointments were created for a bygone era.
Before World War II, presidents needed recess appointment power because the US Senate was out of session more often than lawmakers were in the nation's capital. Presidents sometimes used their power to game the system, rushing nominees through who might have failed to get confirmed. In 2005, President George W. Bush bypassed the senate to appoint John Bolton as Ambassador to the United Nations over criticism from Senate Democrats.
In recent years, senators, including Republicans, have tried to thwart presidents from using their recess appointment power by holding "pro-forma" sessions where even just one senator can briefly convene and conclude business within minutes.
Not everyone is convinced this power grab is wise.
Trump has some defenders, including former White House counsel Don McGhan. McGhan wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that Trump needs the power because the Senate is too slow.
"Returning to the long-standing tradition of recess appointments would ensure that every elected president is able to staff the government with senior officials who share his policy vision," McGahn wrote.
Trump may only be in power for four years, but the reality of Washington is that if he follows Musk's encouragement, he will set a standard Republicans will one day regret.
"The Senate works on precedent, and so whatever happened last is going to be the default for how it should happen going forward," Burgat said, "and so if we know anything about politics and power grabs they are really hard to claw back and the next guy is gonna use it."
Donald Trump offered his full support for House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Johnson is hoping to be reelected as House speaker on Friday.
Trump's endorsement may quell a growing frustration about Johnson's leadership.
President-elect Donald Trump has set up another quasi-loyalty test for House Republicans before he formally reenters the White House.
On Monday, Trump endorsed Speaker Mike Johnson to remain as speaker when the House votes on its next leader on Friday.
"Speaker Mike Johnson is a good, hard working, religious man," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "He will do the right thing, and we will continue to WIN. Mike has my Complete & Total Endorsement. MAGA!!!"
If any Republicans still want to challenge Johnson, they would have to defy Trump. While Trump's failure to get the GOP to back his debt ceiling plan shows such defiance is possible, electing a speaker is an entirely different matter.
Republicans hold an extremely narrow majority, meaning Johnson may be able to afford only a single defection.
Without a speaker, congressional lawmakers could not formally certify Trump's 2024 election win, raising personal stakes for the president-elect to soothe current tensions.
At least one potential challenger, Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, quickly lined up behind Johnson after Trump's show of support.
"Agreed, @realDonaldTrump!" Jordan wrote on X. "Time to do what we said we would do."
"I feel the same way! You have my full support," the world's richest man wrote on X in a reply to Johnson's post thanking Trump for his backing.
A handful of House conservatives have previously expressed displeasure with Johnson, particularly his role in crafting legislation that extended government funding through March 14. Musk and Trump teamed up to kill Johnson's initial bipartisan deal, which was loaded with unrelated provisions to garner support from House Democrats.
Not everyone appears to be convinced by Trump's backing. Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, a libertarian, who initially supported Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in the GOP presidential primary, reiterated his frustration with Johnson's leadership.
"I respect and support President Trump, but his endorsement of Mike Johnson is going to work out about as well as his endorsement of Speaker Paul Ryan," Massie wrote on X. "We've seen Johnson partner with the democrats to send money to Ukraine, authorize spying on Americans, and blow the budget."
Why some conservatives aren't happy with Mike Johnson
Johnson also failed to deliver on Trump's last-minute demand to add a debt-ceiling extension to the must-pass funding bill. Trump has advocated for Congress to permanently ax the debt ceiling, a view shared by liberal lawmakers like Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts.
Trump's debt ceiling failure illustrated that despite his popularity among the GOP base, the president-elect doesn't always get what he wants. Last year, Trump unsuccessfully tried to topple Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
Unlike the Senate, the House speaker vote is public. The House is also filled with Trump loyalists, even more so than when he took office in 2017. While Trump failed to get Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, a close ally, elected speaker last year, the then-former president effectively killed another Republican hopeful's chances during the chaos after former Speaker Kevin McCarthy's ouster.
Trump is also more powerful than last year. He returns to Washington with the promise of a GOP trifecta.
As the incoming president, he has a greater perch to reward loyalists and attack dissenters than he did during the 2023 speaker's race.
Like many moments in Musk's life, it's a remarkable turnaround story.
2024 began with Musk briefly relinquishing his wealthiest title, first to French luxury titan Bernard Arnault and then to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Musk's rival in space travel.
Musk had also backed the wrong candidate. In early 2024, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who Musk had aligned himself with, abruptly ended his campaign after Trump blew him out in the Iowa Republican caucuses. By March, Trump, trying to orchestrate his own comeback, privately met with Musk to ask for his financial support. In response, Musk said his checkbook was closed.
He changed his mind, spending over $277 million backing Trump and the GOP. Musk even campaigned for Trump in Pennsylvania, the biggest swing state.
Musk's wealth surged after the 2024 election election. His big bet is still paying off.
January: Musk visited Auschwitz amid an uproar
Musk ended 2023 under siege. In what he later called his "dumbest" tweet ever, the billionaire promoted an antisemitic post. Media Matters, a liberal nonprofit, accused X of placing ads next to pro-Nazi content, allegations that sent advertisers fleeing the platform.
He apologized for the post but lashed out at advertisers, including Disney CEO Bob Iger, telling them "to go fuck" themselves.
In late January, Musk accepted an invitation to visit the site of the infamous Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp. Afterward, he said he had been "naive" about the Holocaust.
February: Musk returned to the Super Bowl
Musk had a prime seat to watch the Kansas City Chiefs win their second-straight Super Bowl.
This was Musk's first big game since reports surfaced that he spent the 2023 Super Bowl frustrated that President Joe Biden's tweet received more engagement than his own. According to Platformer, Musk pressured Twitter engineers to begin working on ensuring that his future posts would get much larger exposure.
March: X abruptly ended a deal with Don Lemon after a testy interview
X is a platform that champions free speech, and weβre proud to provide an open environment for diverse voices and perspectives. The Don Lemon Show is welcome to publish its content on X, without censorship, as we believe in providing a platform for creators to scale their workβ¦
Musk's X has become a new home for many commentators, including conservative commentator Tucker Carlson.
Former CNN anchor Don Lemon inked a deal with the platform for similar support, but those plans were scrapped after Lemon's interview with Musk.
Lemon, who later sued Musk, questioned the CEO's commitment to welcoming "diverse voices" on X in the wake of the abrupt cancellation.
"His commitment to a global town square where all questions can be asked and all ideas can be shared seems not to include questions of him from people like me," Lemon wrote in a since-deleted post.
April: Musk made a surprise visit to China
Musk sent Tesla shares higher in April amid a previously unannounced visit to China. According to Reuters, the Tesla CEO was there to soothe tensions over the automaker's Full Self-Driving (FSD) software, which has long been hoped to launch in its second-biggest market.
The entry of Tesla's technology into China continues to be delayed.
Musk's ties to China are receiving renewed attention given the powerful post he will occupy outside the Trump administration. Multiple House Democrats accused Musk of helping kill an initial bipartisan year-end spending bill due to including a provision that would regulate US investments in China. Congress eventually averted a government shutdown, but the final legislation did not include the investment restrictions.
"This awful creature needs to be expelled from Congress! Ugh β¦," Musk wrote on X, in response to Rep. Rosa DeLauro, a Connecticut Democrat, calling him out for tanking the deal.
May: Musk welcomed Indonesia to SpaceX's Starlink
SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service exploded in popularity over the year.
In May, Musk headed to the resort island of Bali to welcome Indonesia to Starlink, making it the third Southeast Asian country to receive the service.
Even bigger announcements came later in the year. In September, United Airlines announced it would launch Starlink service early next year. Several major cruise ship companies now offer Starlink as well.
Musk came off the sidelines in a major way by endorsing Trump after the former president survived an assassination attempt. Like others in Silicon Valley, the billionaire later said admired Trump's courage.
With blood across his face, Trump held up his fist and yelled "Fight" as Secret Service agents ushered him off the stage to safety.
It wasn't fully clear at the time, but Musk had already been working to support Trump. Just a day before shots rang out, Bloomberg News reported that the Tesla CEO had donated to a pro-Trump super PAC.
October: Musk joined Trump on the campaign trail
Musk soon became one of the biggest megadonors of the entire 2024 cycle. He wasn't done trying to influence the presidential race.
In October, Musk joined Trump as the former president returned to Butler, Pennsylvania, at the exact location of the July assassination attempt.
"As you can see, I am not just MAGA, I'm dark MAGA," Musk said while wearing an all-black Make American Great Again hat.
Trump's campaign seized on Musk's attire and used it to fuel further fundraising.
The company made history and pulled off an engineering marvel when it demonstrated its ability to catch a 233-foot-tall Super Heavy booster as it descended back toward the launchpad.
The spectacle moved Musk's vision for reusable rockets and, thus, cheaper space travel one step closer to reality.
Musk started $1 million giveaways to voters
Musk didn't stop at donating hundreds of millions to help Trump. He hit the campaign trail, focusing on Pennsylvania, widely viewed as the 2024 election's most important state.
The billionaire went even further in a controversial step, giving away $1 million to voters in swing states. The Trump ally's attorneys later admitted that the checks weren't the result of a true lottery.
Philadelphia's district attorney, Larry Krasner, filed a lawsuit in October attempting to stop the effort. Just before Election Day, a Pennsylvania judge ruled that the checks could go on.
November: The Trump-Musk bromance simmered at Mar-a-Lago
Late on November 5, it became clear that Trump's political comeback would be successful. Musk was at Trump's private Mar-a-Lago club to watch the results unfold.
"We have a new star, a star is born," Trump told boisterous supporters in West Palm Beach, Florida, a few hours before the election was called in his favor. "Elon. He is an amazing guy."
Kai Trump, one of the president-elect's granddaughters, went even further, declaring Musk part of the family's "squad" in a photo that showed over a dozen Trumps next to Musk holding his son, X Γ A-12.
Musk, Trump, and some cabinet picks enjoyed a night out
Musk and Trump remained virtually inseparable after the election. The billionaire maintained a constant presence at Mar-a-Lago.
When the president-elect left his club, Musk would often join him. On November 16, Musk joined Trump's sprawling entourage to watch UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden in New York.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump's pick to lead the Health and Human Services Department, and former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, who Trump nominated to be director of national intelligence, were among those who sat nearby.
December: DOGE took over Capitol Hill
Musk wasted little time working on DOGE, the outside advisory panel that Musk and Ramaswamy have said will cut $2 trillion from the federal budget.
In December, Musk and Ramaswamy visited Capitol Hill to discuss their plans with GOP lawmakers. Musk even brought his son along.
In mid-December, House lawmakers finally reached a deal to avoid a government shutdown just before the Christmas holiday. As was often the case, lawmakers loaded the legislation full of unrelated provisions, stretching the bill to over 1,500 pages long.
Trump's "First Buddy" soon joined a handful of conservative activists in fomenting an effort to kill the bill. Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican who helped break the deal with House Democrats, had to scrap it.
There was brief concern that Musk's actions might lead to a government shutdown, an occurrence he and Trump encouraged if the final deal didn't give them what they wanted.
Ultimately, Trump didn't get his wish for lawmakers to increase the debt ceiling. Musk declared he was satisfied with the final product, which trimmed the deal down which funded the federal government through March 14, included $100 billion in disaster relief, and extended farm policies for a year.
Trump said Musk can't be president
Democrats pounced on the opportunity to blame Musk for the funding bill's death. Some even called him President Musk.
Musk responded by lashing out at Democrats. He said on X the statements were a ploy designed to drive a wedge between him and Trump.
Trump addressed the fracas just before Christmas, joking to a conservative conference that he wasn't worried about the Tesla CEO who can't be president.
"No, he's not gonna be president, that I can tell you," Trump said. "And I'm safe, you know why? He can't be, he wasn't born in this country."
House lawmakers voted to avoid a federal government shutdown on Friday.
The Senate passed the stopgap funding bill minutes after the midnight deadline passed.
The vote caps a week full of drama on Capitol Hill.
President Joe Biden signed a stopgap funding bill on Saturday that prevents a government shutdown. Senate lawmakers passed the bill minutes after the Saturday midnight deadline passed.
Earlier on Friday, House lawmakers voted 366 to 34 for the bill, with one Democratic lawmaker voting present. House Democrats provided significant cover for House Speaker Mike Johnson, who lost 34 Republicanson the measure.
The White House Office of Management and Budget said in a statement on Friday that it had ceased shutdown preparations.
Trump downplayed the stakes of a shutdown, but it likely would have affected the transition of power and some planning for his inauguration.
Now that the bill has been signed into law, government funding will run through March 14, giving President-elect Donald Trump a little breathing room once he retakes office next month.
Republicans denied Trump's request to suspend or even eliminate the debt ceiling, which would have resolved a thorny political issue in advance of a likely GOP effort to extend Trump's 2017 tax law. According to Punchbowl News, Johnson said Republicans have agreed to address the nation's borrowing limit next year when the GOP will retake entire control over Washington.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and his fellow Democrats ultimately backed a deal stripped of many of the incentives initially included to garner more support among his party.
Elon Musk and other conservative activists opposed the initial bipartisan bill earlier this week, effectively killing it. Trump then urged Republicans to pass a pared-down funding bill and an extension of the debt ceiling. On Thursday night, 38 House Republicans and nearly every House Democrat voted against that plan, raising the stakes as a shutdown approached.
"The last 72 hours highlighted the positive impact that DOGE can have, but it also laid bare the massive lift ahead next year," Vivek Ramaswamy, who will co-lead Trump's "Department of Government Efficiency" with Musk wrote on X, "We're Ready for It."
Musk also announced his support of the legislation before its passage. Johnson told reporters he had a brief conversation with him.
"The Speaker did a good job here, given the circumstances," Musk wrote on X. "It went from a bill that weighed pounds to a bill that weighed ounces. Ball should now be in the Dem court."
The episode illustrated that significant divisions remain among Republican lawmakers that even Trump can struggle to paper over. Trump has ambitious plans for his second term, including the potential of using a special procedural power known as reconciliation to ram through tax extensions and border security measures. He'll only be successful if the GOP can remain almost entirely united.
Elon Musk has demonstrated his ability to upend Washington.
Trump allies' and Musk's posts have once again shown the power of X.
Recently, they nuked a government funding bill and possibly saved a cabinet nomination.
Washington better turn on its Twitter, er, X alerts again.
Elon Musk and a loose band of MAGA influencers have shown that even if Twitter wasn't real life, X just might be.
In recent days, Musk's platform has been at the center of efforts to save Pete Hegseth's embattled nomination to lead the Pentagon and to torpedo the type of 1,000-page, year-end spending bills that have joined the National Christmas Tree as a marker of the holiday season.
Democrats are saying that the world's richest man is akin to a shadow president. Some Republicans, like Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, are floating Musk to become the next speaker of the House.
Musk was already set to wield significant power through Trump's "Department of Government Efficiency," an advisory panel the Tesla CEO will co-lead with former GOP presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy.
Trump had said relatively little about how Republicans should finish their final business before he returns to the White House. Musk upended that silence on Wednesday when he began a full-on assault on X against Speaker Mike Johnson's continuing resolution, which would have extended government funding until March 14.
"The voice of the people was heard," Musk wrote on X, quoting a Republican lawmaker's comments that cited his influence in helping kill the funding bill. "This was a good day for America."
Republicans have long complained about how party leaders fund the government with sweeping proposals, via either continuing resolution or omnibus. The conservative opposition then forces Republicans to cater more to Democrats, as leaders have to find the votes somewhere. Case in point, the year-end 2024 continuing resolution included everything from a congressional pay raise to opening the door to Washington's NFL team returning to the city proper to entice Democrats to support it. There was also $100 billion in disaster relief and a one-year extension to the law that prevents the US from reverting to decades-old farm policies. The total bill was 1,547 pages long.
Musk is also using X to urge Republicans to shut down the federal government if they don't get what they want, potentially affecting everything from pay for US service members to the status of US National Parks.
This isn't the first time Trump and his allies have wielded X. His supporters have been highly alert over the president-elect's Cabinet picks since former Rep. Matt Gaetz pulled out of contention to be the next Attorney General. Hegseth, a former Fox News host, looked to be in jeopardy amid a series of reports about his drinking habits and his treatment of women, including allegations of sexual assault.
Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, a combat veteran, expressed concern about Hegseth. In response, a wave of conservative influencers called her out by name on X, and some threatened her with a primary challenge.
"People in Iowa have a well-funded primary challenger ready against her," Charlie Kirk wrote on X. "Her political career is in serious jeopardy."
Ernst, amid the pressure campaign and after additional meetings with Hegseth, later signaled a change in tone on Hegseth's nomination. Without naming her directly, one of Ernst's incoming colleagues said one senator felt "like the entire world coming after her" for not supporting one of Trump's nominees.
"She's being plummeted with threats, with all sorts of things that don't belong in political arena, and her staff is. And so you talk about pressure, right?" Sen.-elect John Curtis of Utah said at a recent event, per Politico. "And speaking with her, she has to worry about things like, 'Well, if I vote against this nominee, what happens to my state when I need something from this administration?'"
Musk alone didn't make X powerful. He is remaking the platform, though, as evidenced by the exodus to Blue Sky and other competitors. He aims to create a free-speech oasis where it is "the best source for truth."
The X CEO has changed policies on the platform based on polls, including when he reinstated Trump's prized account after a simple survey. Musk's posts, including the ones he used to take down the government funding bill, aren't always truthful, such as when he falsely claimed Congress would receive a 40% pay raise (it was 3.5% at most).
It seems like Musk often just wants to dominate the conversation. And while his lofty goals are still in progress, Congress and the rest of the nation's capitol can't afford to ignore him.
They should also turn on Truth Social notifications for good measure.
Marjorie Taylor Greene and Rand Paul floated naming Elon Musk as speaker of the House.
Musk could become speaker, given there are few requirements for the job.
Republicans backed Mike Johnson to retain the gavel in November, but that vote isn't binding.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia joined a growing effort on Thursday by saying she would consider supporting Elon Musk being the next speaker of the House.
"I'd be open to supporting @elonmusk for Speaker of the House," Greene wrote on X. "DOGE can only truly be accomplished by reigning in Congress to enact real government efficiency."
Greene, who has repeatedly tussled with Speaker Mike Johnson, said electing the Tesla CEO as speaker "could be the way" to send a major message to those who want to continue business as usual.
"The establishment needs to be shattered just like it was yesterday," said wrote.
House Republicans voted unanimously last month for Johnson to be their candidate for speaker. But that closed-door result is not binding, as evident by then-Rep. Kevin McCarthy's struggles in early 2023. The entire House will vote in January on the next speaker.
Johnson is facing major unrest among his colleagues after Musk, President-elect Donald Trump, and others effectively blew up a bipartisan deal to avoid a government shutdown that included a number of unrelated provisions to entice Democrats to support it.
Greene tried to oust Johnson in May. But according to Politico reporter Olivia Beavers, she was planning to support Johnson in January.
"Not too long ago, Rep. MTG was telling me she was planning to back Speaker Johnson," Beavers wrote on X.
The US Constitution outlines few requirements for to become speaker of the House. Musk or anyone else would not need to be an elected member of Congress to serve as speaker.
Greene quoted a separate post from Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, which kicked off the effort to make Musk for one of the most powerful jobs in Washington.
"Nothing would disrupt the swamp more than electing Elon Musk . . . think about it . . . nothing's impossible (not to mention the joy at seeing the collective establishment, aka 'uniparty,' lose their ever-lovin' minds)," Paul, a Republican, wrote on X.
Paul's comment is reminiscent of previous efforts to push now-President-elect Donald Trump as speaker. Then-Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican, voted for Trump during the initial days-long stand off that ended up with Johnson as speaker.
As the world's wealthiest person, Musk would have unprecedented power in the unlikely event he were to become speaker β posing a multitude of conflicts of interest. The speaker of the House is also part of the so-called "Gang of 8," a group of top congressional leaders regularly briefed on highly classified US intelligence. While Musk is known for his tendency to plow himself into his work, the day-to-day duties as speaker of the House are considerable.
Musk would also have to give up one powerful aspect of the speakership: the ability to become president. Musk was born in South African to non-US citizens, making him unable to satisfy the US Constitution's requirement that only "natural-born" citizens can become president.
In this event, the House Speaker would not be second in line of succession after the vice president. Instead, the president pro tempore of the US Senate would move up. The president pro tempore is often the senior most member of the majority party, meaning it will likely be Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, who is 91.
Rahm Emanuel reignited one of the longest-running debates about Obama's legacy.
Emanuel said more Wall Street bankers should have faced justice.
Now Biden's US ambassador to Japan, Emanuel is considering a possible run to lead the Democratic Party.
Former Obama White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel said on Tuesday that it was a mistake that more top Wall Street executives didn't pay a price for their role in the 2008 financial crisis.
"Not only was no one held accountable, but the same bankers who engineered the crisis were aggrieved at the suggestion of diminished bonuses and government intervention," Emanuel wrote in a Washington Post op-ed. "It was a mistake not to apply Old Testament justice to the bankers during the Obama administration, as some had called for at the time."
Emanuel, Biden's US ambassador to Japan, is eyeing the potential of returning to politics by running to become the next chair of the Democratic National Committee. In his column, Emanuel said the Democratic Party has been "blind to the rising sea of disillusionment."
"When Donald Trump declared, 'I am your warrior. I am your justice. And for those who have been wronged and betrayed, I am your retribution,' he was channeling a nation's fury," Emanuel wrote. "The online cheerleading for the killer of a health-care insurance CEO in New York City is just more evidence of this seething, populist anger."
In a subtle rebuke of Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign, Emanuel said the nation is not looking for rosy optimism in a time of great instability.
"Campaigns of joy in an era of rage don't win elections," he wrote.
Emanuel's comments reignite one of the longest-running debates of the Obama era: why more top-level executives were not prosecuted in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. Kareem Serageldin, a former top official at Credit Suisse, was the only top banker to receive a sentence connected with The Great Recession. Progressives, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent, have said the lack of prosecutions is a "clear indictment of our broken criminal justice system."
Former Attorney General Eric Holder has said that the DOJ didn't have the needed evidence.
"I think you have to understand, if we could have made those cases, we certainly would have," Holder told NBC late-night host Seth Meyers in 2016. "These are the kind of things that are career-defining. People come to the Justice Department to make these kind of cases. But given the statutes we had to work with and the burdens of proof we had to meet, we were simply unable to do that."
A former mayor of Chicago, Emanuel is a polarizing figure for some in the Democratic Party. He ditched a 2018 reelection campaign for a third term amid signs that his unblemished electoral streak might be squelched. Obama's choice of Emanuel as his first chief of staff surprised some observers who saw the Illinois native as an embodiment of political insiders for a president who ran to shake up the nation's capital. He is widely regarded as a key force behind the passage of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, Obama's singular domestic achievement.
Emanuel's younger brother, Ari, is a Hollywood titan and CEO of Endeavor, which owns World Wrestling Entertainment and the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
The race to lead the Democratic Party during Trump's second administration is particularly crowded. Until Emanuel formally enters the field, the three major candidates are former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, Wisconsin Democratic Party chair Ben Wikler, and Ken Martin, chair of the Minnesota Democratic Farmer-Labor Party, are also in the running.
The next Democratic leader will have a high-profile role, given that Republicans will have complete control over Congress.
Donald Trump addressed the scores of CEOs who have jockeyed to get private meetings.
"Everybody wants to be my friend," Trump told reporters.
Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai, and other top execs have met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago.
President-elect Donald Trump said on Monday that major tech CEOs want to meet with him ahead of his second term, showcasing how an industry that once spurned him is now supportive.
"One of the big differences between the first term, in the first term, everybody was fighting me," Trump told reporters during a news conference. "In this term, everybody wants to be my friend."
Big Tech executives like Apple CEO Tim Cook, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai have or are expected to visit Mar-a-Lago to meet with the president-elect. "I had dinner with, sort of, almost all of them, and the rest are coming," Trump said on Monday.
"I don't know, my personality changed or something," the president-elect added.
The series of meetings follows an election season that saw some major names in Silicon Valley embrace Trump, including, most notably, Elon Musk.
Trump has reciprocated the love, naming Musk to co-lead the newly created "Department of Government Efficiency" and tapping former PayPal executive David Sacks as his crypto and AI czar.
Some in the tech community have also announced their intentions to make $1 million donations to Trump's inaugural committee either by themselves or through their corporation.
Many in the business community, including tech, were skeptical of Trump's first term.
Some, including Musk, broke with Trump over his decision to stick by his campaign promise to withdraw the US from the Paris climate accord. Others, including CEOs from Intel, Merck, and Under Armour, resigned from White House advisory councils in the wake of Trump's response to white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Virginia. Trump, however, continued to court CEOs. In 2019, his White House launched a new business-focused council that included the likes of Cook, along with top leaders from IBM and Walmart.
Big Tech companies and CEOs are already lining up six-figure donations to Donald Trump's inauguration.
Amazon, Sam Altman, and Meta are each prepared to donate $1 million.
There are virtually no limits on inaugural donations, meaning Big Tech companies can cut massive checks.
Big Tech companies and the moguls behind them are preparing to make six-figure donations to President-elect Donald Trump's inaugural committee.
Jeff Bezos' Amazon, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and Mark Zuckerberg's Meta have all been reported to have made or will make $1 million to the outfit tasked with planning and organizing Trump's triumphant return to power.
"The financing of inaugurations is really a cesspool when it comes to campaign financing," Craig Holman, a lobbyist for government watchdog Public Citizen, told Business Insider.
Holman said there are few, if any, limits to inaugural donations, and what makes them particularly appealing is that megadonors and CEOs don't have to worry about picking the loser.
"Unlike financing a campaign, when you don't know for sure who is going to win, here in the inauguration, you've got the winner," he said. "So corporations and other special interests just throw money at them at the feet of the president with the hope of currying favor."
Jeff Hauser, executive director of the Revolving Door Project, a public interest group, said donations to the inaugural committee are less likely to irk the opposition.
"They are frequently a mechanism for entities that sit out elections to get good with the incoming administration," he said.
Trump's 2017 inaugural set a record, raking in roughly $107 million. Las Vegas Sands CEO Sheldon Adelson donated $5 million, the largest single donation. AT&T gave just over $2 million. For many in Washington, it was a time to make nice with an incoming president that few thought would win the 2016 race.
This time, Trump's inaugural offers one final major opportunity for CEOs to curry influence with the president-elect at his peak.
Since he'll be term-limited, the next major fundraising opportunity likely won't come until Trump begins preparations for a presidential library (should that even occur). At that point, companies will have missed their window to make a final impression before mergers and acquisitions.
2017 Trump inaugural donors benefited greatly
Playing ball can have major benefits. OpenSecrets found in 2018 that "of the 63 federal contractors that donated to the inauguration, more than half won multimillion-dollar bids" from the federal government later on.
Foreign donors can't contribute to a president-elect's inaugural committee, and the committee must publicly disclose details about donations over $200 within 90 days of Inauguration Day. Otherwise, there are few limits on what individuals or corporations can give, and inaugural committees are not required to explain how they spend the money.
Some presidents, especially Obama in 2009, have imposed voluntary restrictions on donations. Obama refused to accept corporate donations or individual contributions over $50,000 for his historic first inauguration, though he later lifted those limits for his reelection celebration.
Hauser said donations will allow corporations to prepare for an especially transactional period.
"I think that corporations with an agenda in Trump's Washington, be it offense, like getting new contracts, or defense, like avoiding negative federal scrutiny, are going to spend millions of dollars in Washington to either make or protect billions in the real economy," Hauser said.
Tech companies are under the microscope.
Amazon, Google, and Meta have all faced antitrust concerns. Republican lawmakers have frequently grilled Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg over Facebook's decision to limit sharing the New York Post's initial report on Hunter Biden's laptop ahead of the 2020 election. Zuckerberg and his wife, Priscilla Chan, donated to help election officials during the COVID-19 pandemic, enraging some on the right, while Trump repeatedly lit into Amazon founder Jeff Bezos for The Washington Post's coverage of his first administration. Amazon sued the Trump administration after Microsoft was awarded a $10 billion cloud computing contract over them, alleging that Trump's animus for Bezos sunk their chances.
Bezos and Zuckerberg have since taken steps to repair their relationships with the Trump world. Zuckerberg has expressed regret over Facebook's decision to censor some posts about COVID-19. He also pledged not to donate to help election officials. Bezos intervened when The Post's editorial board was ready to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris.
Bezos also recently said Trump seemed "calmer than he was the first time and more settled."
"You've probably grown in the last eight years," Bezos said at The New York Times DealBook Summit in December. "He has, too."
Altman has been entangled in a legal battle with his OpenAI cofounder Elon Musk, who is set to be an influential figure in the Trump administration.
In a statement about his donation, Altman said, "President Trump will lead our country into the age of AI, and I am eager to support his efforts to ensure America stays ahead."
Representatives for Amazon, Meta, and Trump's inaugural did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
To get a taste of what may be in store, one only needs to look at what happened at President Joe Biden's inauguration.
A leaked fundraising memo showed that large donations netted individuals and organizations various perks, including opportunities to meet Biden, receive private briefings from top campaign officials, and "preferred viewing" for the virtual inauguration.
All of those benefits came amid pandemic precautions. Trump's party will have no such limits.
Trump has promised to do a variety of different things on "Day One" of his second term.
Much of his agenda will take time to implement, but there are things he could start immediately.
Among the first items could be pardons for January 6-related offenses.
President-elect Donald Trump has outlined clear plans on how he plans to spend his first day back in the White House.
He plans to spend his first few hours signing executive orders rolling back some of President Biden's policies, considering pardons for a number of people convicted of January 6-related offenses, and launch his mass deportation program.
Some of the early items on Trump's list are already crossed off. Trump no longer has to fire special counsel Jack Smith, who has moved to dismiss his criminal cases against Trump. Speculation that the president-elect might fire FBI Director Christopher Wray is also moot. Wray announced he would resign before Trump is sworn in.
Other aspects of Trump's agenda, particularly his promises to eliminate taxes on tips, overtime, and Social Security benefits, will require Congress to act.
Trump has also conceded that some of his pledges, like "ending inflation," may be difficult to fulfill. Fellow Republicans are also pressuring the president-elect to expand his agenda to include items like nixing the IRS' free direct tax-filing tool.
Tariffs: Trade wars are likely to return
The president-elect made clear just before Thanksgiving that he intends to use tariffs much like he did during his first term.
In a series of posts, Trump pledged to levy a 25% tariff on all products coming into the US from Mexico and Canada. Chinese imports would get an additional 10%.
He said the tariffs would be among his first actions after being sworn in β meaning he'll likely return to his reliance on a law that allows a president wide discretion to impose tariffs in the event of a national emergency.
Trump said the tariffs are needed to take migration and fentanyl more seriously. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum quickly retorted that her nation may be forced to impose its own retaliatory tariffs.
During his first term, Trump repeatedly threatened to use tariffs as a cudgel, though he did not always follow through.
Executive orders: Immigration and likely legal challenges
Some of Trump's most readily achievable promises are related to immigration, an area where the White House and Executive Branch have a significant say. In the closing days of the campaign, Trump underlined his commitment to getting to work right away on building "the largest deportation force" in the nation's history. The American Civil Liberties Union and other organizations have said they would challenge Trump's actions in court, meaning that anything begun on Day One will only be the beginning of a potentially long legal fight.
Trump also repeatedly promised to curtail parole, which allows immigrants to temporarily live in the US, often for humanitarian reasons. He also pushed debunked claims about secret "migrant flights," which he also promised to ban on day one.
Trump has promised to issue several executive orders when he takes office, though some of them are likely to be challenged in court.
For example, Trump has pledged to sign an executive order revoking birthright citizenship, which is enshrined in the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution.
During the Republican primary, he pledged to take executive action "banning schools from promoting critical race theory or transgender insanity."
It's likely that such an action could mirror an executive order President Joe Biden revoked after taking office, which at the time prohibited the federal government and federal contractors from conducting workplace trainings on "divisive concepts." A federal judge later blocked prohibitions on certain trainings.
Pardons and personnel decisions: January 6 rioters could get immediate pardons
Trump said he could take action on January 6-related pardons "within the first nine minutes."
He has long maintained that some people arrested or convicted of offenses related to the Capitol riot were overcharged. Trump is likely to avoid any personal legal consequences at the federal level for his efforts to overturn the election. Smith's 2020-charges against Trump were dismissed in a way that would allow them to be refiled once the president-elect leaves office in 2029.
In an interview with Time Magazine, Trump said his focus is on non-violent offenders and that he will weigh potential pardons on a "case-by-case" basis.
"We're going to look at each individual case, and we're going to do it very quickly, and it's going to start in the first hour that I get into office," Trump said to the publication during a wide ranging interview. "And a vast majority of them should not be in jail. A vast majority should not be in jail, and they've suffered gravely."
Some of Trump's promises are more simple and involve firing government officials he does not like.
At a Bitcoin conference in July, Trump also pledged to fire Gary Gensler, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission, on "day one" and appoint a replacement. Gensler has angered many in the cryptocurrency community, which Trump and his campaigned courted ahead of the 2024 election. Gensler, too, has headed off a potential showdown by announcing he will resign before Trump's inauguration
Trump has also pledged to pardon January 6 rioters "if they're innocent," which he would be able to do as soon as his first day in office.
"Day One" promises that Trump may not be able to fulfill
Some "day one" commitments are simply not possible.
At times during the campaign, Trump pledged to "end inflation" just hours after taking office. No one, including the president, can single-handedly lower broad price levels set across the entire US economy.
Prices reached record highs earlier in the Biden administration, but since then inflation has continued to cool. Many economists are concerned that Trump's protectionist trade policies could exacerbate inflation. He has repeatedly rejected this view, but conceded lowering grocery prices will be difficult.
"Look, they got them up," Trump said to Time. "I'd like to bring them down. It's hard to bring things down once they're up. You know, it's very hard. But I think that they will. I think that energy is going to bring them down. I think a better supply chain is going to bring them down."
Donald Trump said Elon Musk won't try to use his new power to benefit his companies.
He said Musk is one of "very few people" who would have the credibility to do such work.
Musk's work with DOGE will likely give him some power over agencies that regulate his companies.
In a new interview with Time Magazine, President-elect Donald Trump brushed back concerns that Elon Musk's companies could create a conflict of interest for his work on DOGE.
"I think that Elon puts the country long before his company," Trump said in the interview.
Trump, who Time named its 2024 Person of the Year, said that he trusts Musk, whose companies hold billions in federal contracts.
"He considers this to be his most important project, and he wanted to do it," Trump told Time. "And, you know, I think, I think he's one of the very few people that would have the credibility to do it, but he puts the country before, and I've seen it, before he puts his company."
Musk and conservative entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy have said they will remain outside the government as they oversee "The Department of Government Efficiency" or DOGE.
By staying outside of the government, Musk will avoid some ethical requirements that could have required him to divest some of his fortune. He also won't have to file a financial disclosure, which would have given a snapshot of his considerable holdings.
DOGE could have some influence over government agencies that have investigated Musk's businesses. Musk has repeatedly fought with the FAA, which has jurisdiction over his company SpaceX. The billionaire tussled with the Securities Exchange Commission, which led to Musk being forced to step down as chairman of Tesla Inc. The SEC is looking into Musk's takeover of Twitter. The Department of Justice has also investigated Musk's companies, including whether Telsa misled investors about self-driving capabilities.
Some details about DOGE are still up in the air, including whether the panel will comply with the legal requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act. Legal experts and those familiar with the law have said Musk's "department" clearly falls under the 1972 law's parameters. The law would require DOGE to conduct some of its work publicly and to balance its membership.
Musk has embraced his aura of being Trump's "first buddy" and has been virtually inseparable from the president-elect since Election Day.
In the wide-ranging Time interview, Trump said it will be "hard" to bring down grocery prices. A number of economists have warned that Trump's protectionist trade policies could exacerbate inflation. A spokesperson for Trump's transition did not immediately respond to. Business Insider's request for comment.
Donald Trump successfully used podcasts to expand his reach during the 2024 presidential campaign.
On Election day, Trump ended up boosting his support among men overall compared to 2020.
A variety of podcast hosts are set to have a substantial level of influence in Trump's second term.
President-elect Donald Trump's love for the media is well-known β just look at how much Trump's early picks resemble a Fox News greenroom.
The president-elect made significant efforts during his campaign to get his message in front of podcasters and influencers. Now that he's set to return to power, these commentators will play a major role in setting and pushing his agenda. Or they'll just stream from the White House.
If Donald Trump Jr., who hosts his own podcast, gets his wish they might even be seated somewhere in the White House briefing room.
'The Joe Rogan Experience'
The UFC commentator and comedian Joe Rogan has become one of the biggest names in the podcast world. Rogan's persona and massive following (14.5 million followers on Spotify and nearly 19 million subscribers on YouTube) have given him the sort of platform that continues to attract a range of high-profile guests.
Trump's appearance on Rogan's podcast in October allowed him to reach a critical audience β which heavily skews male β ahead of an election where the president-elect boosted his performance with men compared to 2020. Rogan's reach is so substantial that Trump took a few hours off the campaign trail to travel to Austin, Texas, to sit in the studio with the podcast host.
Rogan, shortly before the election, endorsed Trump's candidacy, calling him "the biggest there is."
Many Democrats pushed for Vice President Kamala Harris to appear on the program before the election, but scheduling during the frenetic last weeks of the race precluded her from traveling to Austin to do so, according to a campaign statement at the time.
"My sincere wish is to just have a nice conversation and get to know her as a human being," Rogan said in October.
'Bannon's War Room'
One of the more seasoned podcasters in Trump's orbit, former White House strategistΒ Steve Bannon,Β started his program during Trump's first impeachment. Trump has said he listens to "Bannon's War Room."
Bannon used the program to foment backlash to then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of California. And Kash Patel, Trump's pick to lead the FBI, has made countless appearances on the show.
Former White House Trade Council director Peter Navarro, set to return to Trump's second administration, was among a handful of commentators who kept Bannon's show going while he was in prison. Like Navarro, Bannon was sentenced for his defiance of a subpoena from the House January 6 committee.
'Triggered with Don Jr.'
Donald Trump Jr., the president-elect's eldest son, has confirmed he won't be in the incoming administration. But he remains a key voice in his father's ear.
Trump Jr. pushes his message in multiple forms, including on his podcast, "Triggered With Don Jr.," which he has hosted for almost a year. He's frequently hosted some of Trump's congressional allies, along with top aides like Stephen Miller, who will return to the White House.
In a recent episode, Trump Jr. teased how the president-elect's transition team is eyeing ways to bring conservative podcasters into the White House briefing room.
'This Past Weekend with Theo Von'
In August, the comedian Theo Von hosted Trump on his podcast, "This Past Weekend with Theo Von." On the program, Von spoke openly with Trump about his recovery from drug addiction. It may not have been seen as a typical stop for a presidential candidate, but the conversation was heard by many Americans, providing Trump with another connection to a bloc of male voters who don't consume much mainstream media.
Von received a shout out from UFC president Dana White during Trump's election night victory speech in Florida.
'The Charlie Kirk Show'
Charlie Kirk, a cofounder of the conservative nonprofit Turning Point USA, has spent over a decade advocating for limited government and free markets among students on high school and college campuses.
Ahead of the 2024 general election, Kirk used Turning Point Action, the political advocacy arm of Turning Point USA, to boost Trump's bid for a second term and amplify his conservative message. Kirk appeared alongside Trump at campaign events in key swing states like Georgia and Nevada, which the president-elect went on to flip in November.
Kirk hosts "The Charlie Kirk Show" podcast, which serves as an influential vehicle for reaching the sort of young voters who were a key part of Trump's electoral gains.
'Full Send Podcast'
Few shows personify "the manosphere" that Trump spent the summer tapping into more than "Full Send," a podcast started by a group of influencers called the Nelk Boys. Trump has made multiple appearances on Full Send, even stumping with one of its members in Las Vegas. Unlike Bannon and some others on this list, the Nelk Boys are not explicitly political, which made their audience ripe for Trump's 2024 appeals but also means they're unlikely to engage in the day-to-day news cycle.
Adin Ross
Adin Ross, an internet personality and popular streamer, sat down with Trump this past August and in a departure from many interviews β gifted the Republican a gold Rolex watch and a customized Tesla Cybertruck.
Ross became a big name through his livestreams of video games, and Trump's interview with the streamer was one more way that he was able to connect with a male-skewing audience.
'The Dan Bongino Show'
Dan Bongino, a former Secret Service agent, is so firmly entrenched in the conservative space that he was selected to replace the late Rush Limbaugh in his coveted time slot. Republican Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and other influential leaders on the right have pushed Trump to name Bongino to run the agency tasked with protecting the president. In the meantime, Bongino has been a vocal proponent of Trump's other nominees and helped lead a pressure campaign to push Sen. Joni Ernst, an Iowa Republican, to back Trump's pick to lead the Pentagon.
'Verdict with Ted Cruz'
Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas has repeatedly offered his full-throated support to Trump, a stark contrast to the bitter end to his 2016 GOP primary run. Like Bannon, Cruz launched his podcast amid Trump's first impeachment battle. He has since used his platform to shed light on Congress and to discuss the news of the day.
With a 53-47 Republican Senate majority beginning in January, Trump can't afford many defections if he wants to get his agenda through the upper chamber. Cruz is well-positioned to serve as a narrator for a far more supportive group than the one that repeatedly vexed Trump in his first term.
'The Megyn Kelly Show'
Many in Trump's orbit once detested former Fox News journalist Megyn Kelly after she asked him during a 2015 GOP presidential debate about past inflammatory comments directed toward women.
"You've called women you don't like fat pigs, dogs, slobs, and disgusting animals," she asked at the time. "Does that sound to you like the temperament of a man we should elect as president?"
Trump repeatedly blasted Kelly after the interview.
But in the intervening years, Kelly left Fox and was hired by NBC News before a tumultuous departure. She's since become a major conservative voice in the podcast world and interviewed Trump on her show in September 2023.
Ahead of the 2024 election, she appeared alongside Trump at a Pennsylvania rally, voicing her support for his campaign and calling him a "protector of women."
'All-In Podcast'
Key venture capitalists embraced Trump ahead of the 2024 election, including former PayPal executive David Sacks. Sacks and fellow venture capitalists, Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, and David Friedberg, hold court on their podcast, "All-In," which was launched during the pandemic.
It remains to be seen how involved Sacks will be going forward on the podcast now that Trump has named him his AI and crypto czar. Trump made an appearance during a June episode.