Finance & economics | Prepare for battle

Will Elon Musk dominate President Trump’s economic policy?

He will face challenges from both America firsters and conservative mainstreamers

Silhouettes of Donald Trump, Elon Musk, Scott Bessent, and Stephen Miller scaling down in decending order, alternating red and black.
Illustration: Getty Images/The Economist
|Washington, DC

To get a full sense of the disruptive potential of Donald Trump’s economic agenda, look beyond the limelight hogged by Elon Musk to the wider cast of characters in the president-elect’s orbit. Russ Vought, a budget director, promises to “break the bureaucracy to the presidential will”. Peter Navarro, a trade adviser, muses about cancelling America’s trade deal with Canada and Mexico. Andrew Ferguson, an antitrust official, rails against big tech firms for suppressing dissident speech.

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This article appeared in the Finance & economics section of the print edition under the headline “Swords at the ready”

From the January 4th 2025 edition

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