Elon Musk's ties to the Trump administration pose potential conflicts of inteterest for his various businesses that have extensive contracts with the federal government.

The head of Tesla, SpaceX and the X social media site once known as Twitter has strengthened his ties to the Silver State over the years.

In picking billionaire Elon Musk to be “our cost cutter” for the U.S. government, President-elect Donald Trump won't be the first American president to empower a business tycoon to look for ways to dramatically cut federal regulations.