One of President-elect Donald Trump’s biggest benefactors in his bid for a second term was Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla Motors and SpaceX and the the richest man on the planet. Musk threw his all into Trump’s re-election bid and now appears poised to wield influence disproportionate role in a second administration. But what is he likely to get in return?

Even before jump on stage and declaring himself “dark MAGA” at an October Trump rally in Pennsylvania, Musk invested a staggering amount of money in the race: starting in the summer, when he approved Trump after former president narrowly escaped assassination attempt, Musk paid more than $118 million in his own pro-Trump political action committee, an amount greater than what Trump’s official campaign collected in total small-dollar donations.

After that, Musk fully engaged, making Trump America’s last hope. “Very few Americans realize that if Trump is NOT elected, this will be the last election,” he wrote in a September statement. job on X. “Far from being a threat to democracy, he is the only way to save it!”

But given his business portfolio, Musk had very clear financial interests in the outcome of the election, especially since the president wields considerable power. discretionary power on numerous government subsidies. In a second Trump administration, Musk could wield considerable influence over government policy for his own benefit. But if he pushes Trump to embrace a broader deregulatory agenda, it could bring benefits far beyond just Musk’s companies.

On the campaign trail, Trump repeatedly suggested he would cancel a program providing $7,500 tax credits for the purchase of new electric vehicles (EVs), tell Reuters“tax credits and tax incentives are generally not a very good thing.”

Musk made similar comments, developer The Wall Street Journal in 2021, “We don’t need the $7,500 tax credit.” In July 2024, it job on X, “Remove subsidies. This will only help Tesla. Remove subsidies from all industries too!”

But Tesla is one of the biggest beneficiaries of government incentives. Tesla’s Model Y is one of the few electric vehicles that qualifies for purchase credit after stricter procurement requirements come into effect. The Y model accounted for for a third of all electric vehicle sales between January 1 and June 10 of this year; during the same period, the government distributed over $1 billion in EV credits. And last year, Tesla listed certain models of its new Cybertruck at $79,990 or less, just $10 less than the tax credit eligibility threshold.

Tesla also benefits from environmental credits, which state and federal governments provide for building low-emission vehicles. “Tesla Reported About $10 Billion ‘Excess Credit Sales’ Since 2015”, CNBC reported last week. “Regulatory credits accounted for approximately 60% of Tesla’s net income in the second quarter of 2024 and 39% in the third quarter. Other government rebates on electric vehicle sales accounted for approximately 50% of Tesla’s third-quarter profit.”

THE Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act established the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) program, which would enable dispense more than $4 billion in public grants over five years to build public electric vehicle charging stations. In 2021 Wall Street Journal In an interview, Musk called such a program “useless.” But Policyby David Ferris written in February that to date, Tesla had won more than 13% of all NEVI contracts awarded, totaling more than $17 million.

SpaceX, Elon Musk’s space technology company, is also expected to benefit. “SpaceX has received more than $19 billion in federal government contracts since 2008,” CNBC reportedand “is on track to reap several billion dollars annually from prime contracts with the federal government for years to come.” This amount does not include classified contracts: earlier this year, Reuters reported that SpaceX signed a $1.8 billion contract to secretly develop a network of spy satellites for the US government.

Starlink, SpaceX’s subsidiary satellite internet service, has also won government contracts over the years, not without controversy: in 2022, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rejected Starlink proposed an $885.5 million contract to deploy broadband satellites in rural areas of the United States, concluding that Starlink “failed to demonstrate that it could provide the promised service.” Republican FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr charge that Starlink’s application was rejected for “partisan politics,” and last month, the Republican-led House Oversight and Accountability Committee. announcement that it would investigate the FCC’s decision.

Meanwhile, President Joe Biden’s 2021 infrastructure bill distributed $42 billion to expand high-speed Internet across the country. In more than two years, the program failed to connect a single household. The Washington Post reported in October that Republican lawmakers have “telegraphed business benefits for Starlink, including pushing the company to get a share” of that internet subsidy money.

Trump has indicated he wants to put Musk in charge of a government efficiency commission charged with reducing greenhouse gas emissions. billions of dollars of the federal budget. With such a position, Musk could have considerable influence over these contracts and programs, and he could very well request their continuation or extension. Trump even softened his rhetoric on the campaign trail in response to Musk’s support, adage in August, “I have no choice” but to support electric vehicles “because Elon has supported me very strongly.”

On the other hand, Musk could push Trump further in the direction of deregulation, which would benefit not only his companies but also his competitors. “Elon Musk sees all regulations as an obstacle to his business and innovation,” said a former SpaceX executive. told Reuters. “He sees the Trump administration as getting rid of as many regulations as possible, so he can do what he wants, as fast as he wants.”

Of the two options, this one should be the clear favorite, allowing not only Tesla and SpaceX, but all other such companies, to compete and innovate on a level playing field. Musk should follow his own advice: end favorable government subsidies and contracts and let the private sector compete.