Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and chief of DOGE, has taken a significant step to influence U.S. trade policies. Two of his leading companies, SpaceX and Tesla, have submitted letters to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. These letters lobby against the tariff policies implemented by the Trump administration, which have prompted retaliatory actions from foreign governments, posing challenges to the operations of these companies.
SpaceX and Tesla, both under the leadership of Elon Musk, are pressing the U.S. trade representative to reconsider certain aspects of the tariff policies. SpaceX's senior director of global business and government affairs, Mat Dunn, emphasized the financial burden these policies impose on their operations abroad. In a letter, Dunn highlighted that SpaceX faces high costs due to fees paid to foreign governments for spectrum access and import duties on Starlink satellite internet equipment. These costs, he mentioned, "substantially increase the cost of operating in these countries — artificially."
"The import duties paid in a handful of countries represent a significant cost increase for Starlink products in those countries, despite the United States having essentially no duties on similar foreign products that are imported into the United States to serve customers here," said Mat Dunn.
Tesla's letter also addressed concerns regarding retaliatory levies imposed by foreign governments on U.S. exports. These levies are in response to tariffs placed by the Trump administration on imports from China, Mexico, and Canada. The retaliatory measures by China and Canada have posed a threat to Tesla's financial performance.
"As President Trump has noted with other sectors, this is a significant disadvantage to U.S. companies," stated Mat Dunn.
Elon Musk's involvement in this lobbying effort aligns with his broader efforts to reduce federal government spending and employee headcount as per President Donald Trump's directives. By addressing these tariff challenges, Musk aims to mitigate operational costs and maintain competitiveness for his companies in the global market.