President-elect Trump is expanding his search to lead the Treasury Department as the jockeying over who will fill the key economic role has spilled into public view.
Investor Scott Bessent appeared to be the front-runner for the role and has visited Mar-a-Lago multiple times in recent weeks, but billionaire Elon Musk, who has frequently been by Trump’s side since Election Day, advocated over the weekend for Howard Lutnick, the Cantor Fitzgerald head who is co-leading Trump’s transition team.
The search has since expanded beyond those two names.
A source close to the transition confirmed to The Hill that Trump was also considering Apollo Global Management co-founder Marc Rowan and former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh for the job.
Trump’s eventual picks for his economic team will be tasked with implementing key campaign promises, such as extending tax cuts set to expire next year and imposing tariffs on imports that Trump made central to his economic pitch to voters, despite concerns from economists.
“All these guys will be OK with tax cuts and reassuring the markets,” said one source close to the transition. “But he wants somebody that is a true believer in what he thinks on tariffs, and…there’s no proof for these people being pro-tariff 18 months ago or 36 months ago.”
The jockeying for Treasury secretary had largely played out behind the scenes until this weekend, when Musk posted on X that Bessent would be a “business-as-usual” choice.
“Business-as-usual is driving America bankrupt, so we need change one way or another,” Musk wrote, encouraging others to weigh in with their opinions.
Trump has yet to publicly announce any of his choices for key economic positions, which include Treasury secretary, Commerce secretary, head of the National Economic Council and U.S. Trade Representative.
Multiple sources close to Trump’s orbit said Linda McMahon is the front-runner to lead the Commerce Department. McMahon previously led the Small Business Administration during Trump’s first term and is a co-chair of his transition effort.
Robert Lighthizer, who served as Trump’s trade representative during his first term and is a staunch tariff advocate, is also in the mix for a job in the upcoming administration, though the exact role is still unclear.
“President-Elect Trump is making decisions on who will serve in his second Administration. Those decisions will continue to be announced by him when they are made,” Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for the transition, said in a statement.
Trump on the campaign trail vowed to extend the individual tax cuts that were part of the legislation he signed in 2017, but that are set to expire in 2025. He also said he would push to lower the corporate tax rate from 21 percent, which was established in the 2017 law.
Trump also proposed a flurry of other tax breaks, including on tipped wages, Social Security benefits and overtime wages. His economic team will need to work closely with GOP majorities in the House and Senate to advance a tax cut bill.
Trump has also for months promised to impose blanket tariffs on all imports, a plan economists have warned could spike the cost of goods in the U.S. and increase costs for families. But Trump has shrugged off those concerns, claiming the tariffs will cause more companies to do business inside the U.S.
Trump has also said he would seek to use tariffs as leverage in negotiations with other countries. He told supporters earlier this month that he would place a minimum 25 percent tariff on all imports from Mexico, which is the top trade partner with the U.S., unless the Mexican government took action to curb migration at the southern border.
