President-elect Donald Trump has announced that Carl Icahn, best known to many in the business world as an investor activist and corporate raider, has agreed to serve as a special advisor on issues relating to regulatory reform.
“Over the course of six decades, Mr. Icahn has distinguished himself as one of America’s most successful businessmen and investors,” a statement on Trump’s transition team website says. “Mr. Icahn was one of President-elect Trump’s earliest supporters, and his intimate knowledge of what businesses need to grow and thrive makes him a trusted voice in developing President-elect Trump’s America First economic agenda. Icahn will be a leader in helping American entrepreneurs shed job-killing regulations that stifle economic growth.”
Trump has singled out rulemaking mandated by the Dodd-Frank Act as prominent targets for regulatory rollbacks once he is in office.
“Under President Obama, America’s business owners “have been crippled by over $1 trillion in new regulations and over 750 billion hours dealing with paperwork,” Icahn said. “It’s time to break free of excessive regulation and let our entrepreneurs do what they do best: create jobs and support communities. President-elect Trump is serious about helping American families, and regulatory reform will be a critical component of making America work again.”
Icahn, a New York City native, began his career on Wall Street in 1961. In 1968, he formed Icahn & Co., and has gone on to become one of the most well-known and influential investors in America, holding substantial or controlling positions in numerous American companies over the years, including RJR Nabisco, Texaco, Philips Petroleum, Western Union, Gulf & Western, Viacom, Revlon, Time Warner, Motorola, Chesapeake Energy, Dell, Netflix, Apple, and eBay.
Icahn will be advising the President in his individual capacity and will not be serving as a federal employee or a Special Government Employee and will not have any specific duties.
No comments yet