Elon Musk wouldn't have time to be in Donald Trump's Cabinet due to demands of running his various companies, but he could "consult," the former president said Monday.
"Elon and I have a great relationship. He's great, and he's smart and we have to cherish our geniuses, we don't have many of them. He is a brilliant guy. What he would really like to do is get involved in cutting some of the fat, and he knows how to do it," Trump said during an interview with former Navy Seal Shawn Ryan.
"He wants to be involved. Now look, he's running big businesses and all that, so he can't, really, I don't think he could be Cabinet. I'd put him in the Cabinet, absolutely, but I don't know how he could do that with all the things he's got going. But he can sort of, as the expression goes, consult with the country and give you some very good ideas, like on AI, nobody knows more about it than Elon. It's a big thing."
Trump last week told Reuters that if elected he would consider ending a $7,500 tax credit for electric vehicle purchases and that he would be open to naming Musk to a Cabinet or advisory role.
"Tax credits and tax incentives are not generally a very good thing," Trump told Reuters in an interview after a campaign event in York, Pennsylvania, when asked about the EV credit.
Asked if he would consider naming Musk to an advisory role or Cabinet job, Trump said he would.
"He's a very smart guy. I certainly would, if he would do it, I certainly would. He's a brilliant guy," Trump said.
Musk last month publicly endorsed Trump in the U.S. presidential race.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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