New Commission planned: Trump follows Musk's lead in terms of efficiency

New commission planned
In terms of efficiency, Trump and Musk were guided

05.09.2024, 15:21

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Whoever can convince US voters on economic issues has a good chance of becoming the next president. Donald Trump is hoping to draw on the expertise of Elon Musk. The tech billionaire's ideas will be incorporated into his future government.

Former US President Donald Trump plans to make a series of economic proposals in a speech, including the creation of a government efficiency commission recommended by Elon Musk, an even more aggressive attack on regulations during his first term in the White House and a commitment to cut certain unspent funds approved during President Joe Biden's administration, according to the Wall Street Journal, which has seen parts of the speech.

The commission would conduct “a complete financial and performance audit of the entire government” and make “recommendations for fundamental reforms,” ​​according to the manuscript for a speech to the Economic Club of New York. The goal is to find ways to eliminate fraud and improper payments, according to parts of the speech.

Trump and Musk have grown closer, while Musk's political views have become more conservative. In a recent conversation on X, the entrepreneur suggested Trump create a commission to look into government spending to combat inflation. “I can't wait. There is a lot of waste and unnecessary regulation in government that needs to be eliminated,” Musk tweeted this week amid speculation about his role.

Harris wants top tax rate

The speech should give Trump the opportunity to focus more on the economy, which voters have frequently cited as the most important campaign issue. The speech comes just days before the debate with Vice President Kamala Harris on Tuesday in Philadelphia.

The latest Wall Street Journal poll shows Trump leading Harris by 8 points when voters are asked who would best handle the economy and by 5 points when it comes to inflation. However, Trump had a larger lead when Biden was still in the race.

Harris, whose candidacy was dismissed by Trump as lacking in substance, has drafted her own proposals, including a tenfold increase in the tax deduction for starting small businesses. On Wednesday, she also outlined a less marginal increase in the top capital gains tax rate than Biden, although the top capital gains tax rate of 33 percent would be the highest since 1978.

Harris has also embraced Trump's proposal to eliminate taxes on tips, but not his plan to eliminate taxes on Social Security for seniors.

Harris has tried in speeches and TV ads to portray Trump as caring about big business and the wealthy. He will extend the 2017 tax cuts that expire after 2025 and further reduce the corporate tax rate to a level below the usual 21 percent. Trump has already said he would prefer 15 percent. Harris would raise it to 28 percent.