Elon Musk's 'special' status in government

Here & Now Anytime

WBUR

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4.6 • 911 Ratings

🗓️ 4 February 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

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Summary

In the past few days, Elon Musk has been very busy with his unpaid, part-time job as a special government employee. Law professor Richard Painter talks about the limits of Musk's power to eliminate entire agencies and their employees. Then, we unpack the latest moves in Trump's second administration through a historical lens, with Princeton University historian Julian Zelizer. And, then a global view of President Trump's threatened trade war. First, the U.S. has imposed new 10% tariffs on goods from China, and China responded by imposing 15% tariffs on coal and liquefied natural gas from the U.S. NPR's John Ruwitch joins us from Beijing. Then, tariffs on goods from Mexico are on hold for now. Washington Post reporter Mary Beth Sheridan tells us more. And, after Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke on Monday, the U.S. also has held off on imposing tariffs on all goods from Canada. We hear from the University of Toronto's Peter Morrow.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, it's Robin Hilton from NPR Music.
0:02.2	Many years ago, I helped start the Tiny Desk concert series.
0:05.4	And right now, NPR is looking for the next great, undiscovered musician to perform behind the famous desk.
0:12.0	Think you've got what it takes?
0:13.2	Submit a video of you playing an original song to the Tiny Desk Contest by February 10th.
0:18.6	Find out more and see the official rules at npr.org slash tiny desk contest.
0:24.2	He commits a crime if he participates in any government matter that has a direct
0:29.0	predictable effect on his own financial interest.
0:32.0	Elon Musk is moving fast and breaking things as the old Silicon Valley adage goes.
0:38.4	And one of those things might be the law.
0:42.3	It's Tuesday, February 4th, and this is here and now anytime from NPR and WBUR.
0:47.8	I'm Chris Bentley.
1:02.5	Today on the show, putting the second Trump administration into historical context.
1:05.3	Trump himself is sweet generous. There's no one like him.
1:07.0	But his policies are consistent with Republican orthodoxy, says one presidential historian.
1:13.3	Also, tariffs on Canada and Mexico were delayed for one month.
1:18.8	Well, 10% import taxes on many goods from China are now in effect.
1:23.7	But what is the administration hoping to get from threatening a trade war?
1:28.4	It's really unclear at this point how much discussion is actually happening between the two sides
1:33.6	on trade or on any of these other issues since the transition to the second Trump presidency began.
1:40.4	But first, in just the past few days, Elon Musk has frozen work at the U.S. Agency for International Development.
1:48.0	He's gained access to the Treasury Department's payment system, and the Department of Education is next on the chopping block.
	...

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