Besent, Lutnick in Final Push for Trump Treasury Secretary Pick

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(Bloomberg) — Billionaire Elon Musk has voiced his support for Howard Lutnick in the race to become President Donald Trump’s next Treasury secretary as the warring camps make a final push for the coveted cabinet post.

The dispute has delayed decisions on Trump’s economic picks as he scrambles to fill many other positions in his incoming administration.

Musk said on his social media platform X that he sees the CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald LP as disturbing compared to the founder of Key Square Group LP, Scott Bessent, another candidate for the position who met with Trump on Friday.

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Allies of both Bessent and Lutnick have been seeking calls from Trump, creating tension and increasing the possibility of another candidate emerging, people familiar with the decision said.

Trump himself appeared frustrated by the controversy and staff sought alternatives, with Robert Lighthizer, Senator William Hagerty and Apollo Global Management Inc. Chief Executive Officer Marc Rowan among the names in the mix.

Lutnick was a key supporter of Trump’s fundraising efforts in the final months of the campaign and has helped lead the party through the presidential transition. As a result, some key advisers are looking at what else Lutnick could take — if not Treasury — as a plum ambassador, according to people familiar with the decision.

Ultimately, it’s up to Trump, who doesn’t share his views publicly, some people said.

Musk said he sees Bessent as “a business-as-usual choice” while Lutnick is “actually going to make a change,” and encouraged others to weigh in on the decision.

Lutnick currently serves as co-chair of Trump’s transition efforts. Bessent was at Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s club, on Saturday.

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Musk’s post was in response to veteran investor Kyle Bass, who wrote that Bessent was “more qualified than Howard Lutnick to run the US Treasury” and understood “markets, economics, people, and world politics better than anyone I’ve ever interacted with.” “

Lutnick’s past campaign contributions may complicate matters as he viees for a cabinet position. He gave $2,700, then the limit, to Hillary Clinton’s campaign on June 30, 2015, Federal Election Commission records show. He also donated in the 2016 election cycle to the Senate campaign of Kamala Harris, along with other politicians in both parties.

A representative for Lutnick declined to comment, as did Bessent.

Musk has been at Trump’s side since Election Day, sitting in on transition meetings and phone calls and meetings with foreign leaders and was himself appointed to a government performance review team. But the limits of his political influence became apparent this week, when Senate Republicans chose John Thune of South Dakota over Rick Scott of Florida — whom Musk had publicly endorsed — as their next leader.

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Recruitment efforts for the Treasury job, which will remain at the center of Trump’s tax and tax reform agenda, have intensified in recent days, as the fight for the position has made headlines. Larry Kudlow, former director of the National Economic Council, told the president’s delegation that he did not want to have a role in the new administration.

Here’s the latest from the transition:

Trump supports Whatley

The president-elect used a Friday night gathering at his Mar-a-Lago club to publicly endorse fellow Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley for another term, CNN reported.

Trump invited Whatley on stage during a Conservative Political Action Conference donor meeting at his place and offered him a job, which Whatley accepted. The North Carolina lawmaker has led the committee along with Lara Trump, the president-elect’s daughter-in-law, since March, when chairwoman Ronna McDaniel was ousted at Trump’s urging.

Trump’s nomination of Senator Marco Rubio as secretary of state has prompted a proposal that Florida Governor Ron DeSantis nominate Lara Trump to serve for the next two years.

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On the Democratic side, US Ambassador to Japan and former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel is weighing a bid to run for chairman of the Democratic National Committee, reports Axios.

Secretary of Labor

Trump announced on Saturday that he will name William Owen Scharf, one of his lawyers, as staff secretary, a key behind-the-scenes role in the White House that decides the entry and exit of documents in the Oval Office.

“Will is a talented attorney who will be an important part of my White House team,” Trump said in a statement. “He played a key role in defeating the Electoral and Legal Disruption I faced, including winning a historic Supreme Court Decision.”

Trump’s first secretary, Rob Porter, was among a tight-knit group of top aides during his first term and dated Hope Hicks, the White House communications director. But the pair became tabloid figures – and Porter resigned – after allegations of abuse by two ex-wives emerged.

Power Work

Trump also announced on Saturday that he will nominate Chris Wright, who runs a Colorado oil and natural gas company, to lead the Department of Energy.

—With help from Amanda Gordon, Bill Allison, Justin Sink and Joshua Green.

(Updates throughout)

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