Trump prepares Cabinet picks amid uncertain House control

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With former President Donald Trump's election victory, he will now begin the process of transitioning back into the White House and selecting members for his Cabinet. This comes as politicians and observers await the final determination of whether the Democrats or Republicans will gain control of the House of Representatives.

Bipartisan Policy Center executive director of economic policy Shai Akabas and The Washington Note founding editor-at-large Steve Clemons provide insights into the potential makeup of Trump's incoming administration on Wealth!

Clemons notes that multiple individuals are being considered for key Cabinet positions, including names like Mike Pompeo, Lindsey Graham, Tom Cotton, and Josh Hawley. However, Clemons does not foresee Elon Musk being appointed to a formal Cabinet role despite being a major influence throughout Trump's campaign period.

"I think Elon is in a complicated position. For him to get a Senate-confirmed position, I think he'd have to pretty much divest himself from a lot of his assets that define him, like SpaceX and Tesla (TSLA)." Instead, Clemons believes Musk may be offered an advisory role.

One of the initiatives Musk has reportedly advocated for is cutting federal spending by up to $2 trillion.

Akabas calls this an "admirable goal," but notes the challenge lies in the fact that much of the government's spending is on "autopilot" through programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and interest on the national debt. Akabas explains that the potential areas for cuts represent only around 15% of the overall federal budget.

"Even if you eliminated that entire part of the federal spending, which encompasses most government agencies, you would not solve our fiscal challenges that we have today," he states.

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This post was written by Angel Smith