Will quit Trump's council if US leaves Paris agreement: Musk
Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk has said he will quit US President Donald Trump's manufacturing council if Washington pulls out of the Paris Agreement. This comes amid speculation that Trump is considering backing out of the agreement. He is supposed to announce his decision on June 1. If Musk quits, it might further hit relations between the tech industry and the Trump administration.
White House names Trump's manufacturing council members
The White House administration revealed the full membership of Donald Trump's manufacturing council. In December 2015, Trump had announced that Dow Chemical CEO Andrew Liveris would lead the manufacturing council. The list released by the White House shows that the council will also include the likes of SpaceX and Tesla Motors CEO Elon Musk and the founder of Dell Technologies Michael Dell, among others.
Why is Elon Musk's appointment unusual?
The access Trump is giving to Elon Musk is noticeable, considering the fact that other executives appointed to such councils represent much larger companies. For instance, executives at Trump's Tech Summit represented companies with market capitalization's of over $150 billion, compared to Tesla's $40 billion.
Elon Musk and Trump's partnership
Being named in the manufacturing council marked the second time that Elon Musk was picked for one of Trump's advisory groups. Musk is also part of Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum. Musk has also been rather vocal about his support for Trump, and recently tweeted to support Trump's pick of Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. Earlier this week Musk also met Trump.
Musk tweets about Rex Tillerson
Elon Musk endorsed Rex Tillerson on several counts, praising him for recognizing that "climate change does exist", and that action should be taken. Musk also praised Tillerson for backing a carbon tax, which Musk believes, will encourage the development of renewable energy sources.
Other notable members of the manufacturing council
Apart from Michael Dell and Musk, Trump's manufacturing council also features heads of several industry leaders. Among others, the list features Ford CEO Mark Fields, General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt, Intel Corporation CEO Brian Kraznich, Whirlpool CEO Jeff Fetig Lockheed Martin CEO Marillyn Hewson, Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenberg, Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman, Under Armour CEO Kevin Plant, and Johnson & Johnson CEO Alex Gorsky.
