Billionaire launches largest deregulation in US history.
Even before Donald Trump took office, his key supporter Elon Musk was vocal about his intention to use his influence in the federal government to deregulate private business. Now, the billionaire is taking concrete steps in that direction.
In the early weeks of the Trump administration, Musk drew attention mostly by attacking federal employees and government spending. But now the focus is on deregulation. During a recent public discussion, the billionaire said that all existing regulations should be eliminated.
“The default is no regulation,” the White House chief of government efficiency said. Musk said that if a measure is truly necessary, it can be reinstated, but “rules are being added haphazardly, and it’s time for a spring cleaning.”
The statement comes amid his active influence on federal policy, including a recent attack on the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Musk himself has publicly bragged about it, writing on social media X*: “We spent the weekend putting USAID through the shredder.”
The massive deregulation that the entrepreneur is pushing for has sparked a heated debate. Regulations protect workers’ rights, limit industrial pollution, and protect consumers from dangerous products. Musk, however, argues that bureaucratic barriers stifle freedom.
“If the government has millions of rules that are holding everyone back, that’s not freedom,” he said. But the data doesn’t support his claim. As of the end of 2024, the U.S. Federal Register contained about 107,000 pages of regulations, significantly fewer than Musk estimates.
The Biden administration has introduced a raft of new regulations over the past year, from expanding overtime rights to banning asbestos. These are the measures that the Trump-Musk team is seeking to undo.
Even before Donald Trump took office, his key supporter Elon Musk was vocal about his intention to use his influence in the federal government to deregulate private business. Now, the billionaire is taking concrete steps in that direction.
In the early weeks of the Trump administration, Musk drew attention mostly by attacking federal employees and government spending. But now the focus is on deregulation. During a recent public discussion, the billionaire said that all existing regulations should be eliminated.
“The default is no regulation,” the White House chief of government efficiency said. Musk said that if a measure is truly necessary, it can be reinstated, but “rules are being added haphazardly, and it’s time for a spring cleaning.”
The statement comes amid his active influence on federal policy, including a recent attack on the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Musk himself has publicly bragged about it, writing on social media X*: “We spent the weekend putting USAID through the shredder.”
The massive deregulation that the entrepreneur is pushing for has sparked a heated debate. Regulations protect workers’ rights, limit industrial pollution, and protect consumers from dangerous products. Musk, however, argues that bureaucratic barriers stifle freedom.
“If the government has millions of rules that are holding everyone back, that’s not freedom,” he said. But the data doesn’t support his claim. As of the end of 2024, the U.S. Federal Register contained about 107,000 pages of regulations, significantly fewer than Musk estimates.
The Biden administration has introduced a raft of new regulations over the past year, from expanding overtime rights to banning asbestos. These are the measures that the Trump-Musk team is seeking to undo.
