President Trump will place billionaire businessman Elon Musk at the helm of a proposed government efficiency commission, he said during a speech meant to highlight his economic policies.

The Republican candidate announced the move in an address before the Economic Club of New York on Thursday. The idea to create such a commission emerged from a conversation between Mr. Musk and the 45th president during a live-streamed conversation in August. Mr. Musk suggested that an efficiency commission could help reel in unnecessary government spending and help tame inflation. 

In the weeks since, Mr. Musk has suggested his willingness to participate in the commission, even writing on X, ahead of Trump’s address: “I look forward to serving America if the opportunity arises. No pay, no title, no recognition is needed.”

During his speech on Thursday, Trump provided additional details on the proposed commission, noting that it would conduct a “complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government” and produce “recommendations for drastic reforms.” Trump claimed that the commission would “totally eliminate fraud and improper payments” and save Americans “trillions of dollars.” 

“We need to do it. Can’t go on the way we are now,” Trump said.

Trump did not get into specifics about the size of the commission nor did he outline how it would be funded. Including mandatory entitlements such as social security and medicare and interest on the total debt, the American government spent more than $6 trillion in fiscal 2023. Only about $1.7 trillion of that was discretionary spending, however, with the rest being required by law.

While Mr. Musk’s involvement was confirmed in Trump’s speech, it remains to be seen whether his position as head of several companies subject to governmental regulation — including Tesla and SpaceX — will pose a conflict of interest. 

During his speech, Trump fleshed out other economic policy proposals, including his intention to reduce governmental regulation. In an escalation from his 2017 “one in, two out” executive order, Trump promised that any new regulation would be matched with the elimination of ten pre-existing regulations. 

Trump threw jabs at the Biden-Harris administration throughout his 90-minute speech, claiming that the administration’s “radical policies” had made America “a failing nation, a nation in serious decline.” 

He also made an effort to contrast his policies with those suggested by Vice President Harris, vowing to extend his 2017 tax cuts and reduce corporate tax rates to 15 percent for companies which “make their product in America.” Ms. Harris, meanwhile, has proposed raising the corporate tax rate to 28 percent. 

“My message is simple. Make your product here in America and only in America,” he said. His protectionist policies extended to calling for strong tariffs on imports in an effort to raise domestic manufacturing. 

“Smart tariffs will not create inflation, they will combat inflation,” Trump said. “A combination of fair trade, tax cuts, regulatory cuts and energy abundance will allow us to produce more goods, better and cheaper right here in the U.S.A.”

The economy is proving to be among the top issues for voters ahead of November’s election. A recent Wall Street Journal poll suggests that voters view Trump as the better candidate to improve the economy and reduce inflation by a margin of eight points and five points, respectively. The candidates’ differing economic policies will be a focus point in the upcoming debate.