- Citadel CEO Ken Griffin spoke out at the UBS Financial Services conference in Key Biscayne, Fla., on Tuesday, thanking Elon Musk for his work with DOGE, but sounding his disdain for President Donald Trump’s tariffs plan.
Many members of Congress on both sides of the aisle have been anything but pleased with Elon Musk’s work leading the Department of Government Efficiency. But the Tesla CEO has the support of fellow billionaire Ken Griffin, founder and CEO of hedge fund Citadel.
At the UBS Financial Services conference in Key Biscayne, Fla., on Tuesday, Griffin thanked Musk "from the bottom of my heart” in response to a question about how Musk had been handling DOGE.
“We need to take back the reins of government from the bureaucrats who only know how to spend our money,” Griffin said, referencing other executives who have shifted their focus to government work like Musk—including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has recently been rubbing elbows with the Trump administration.
The purpose of DOGE was to investigate federal spending, but it’s turned into a slashing spree for the Department of Education, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and several government-funded DEI initiatives. DOGE has claimed to average about $1 billion a day in savings based on budget cuts, but has provided no evidence of that or any explicit breakdown of cost savings.
"Is he breaking a lot of glass?” Griffin questioned, regarding Musk. “Absolutely. But he doesn't have a lot of time. As a taxpayer, I'm so appreciative."
Representatives for Griffin declined to provide additional comment.
While Griffin sang Musk’s praises, he didn’t have the same glowing review of President Trump’s tariffs plan. Griffin is a high-profile Republican donor worth nearly $42 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, but he didn’t support Trump’s 2024 campaign—and even previously called Trump a “three-time loser.” He did later admit he voted for Trump in 2024 and also donated $1 million to his inauguration fund, among other billionaires.
Griffin called out Trump’s tariffs on Tuesday, saying “it sears into the minds of CEOs and policymakers that we can’t depend on the United States as a trading partner.” Several other CEOs have spoken out about Trump’s tariffs, especially since the burden of said tariffs is typically passed on to the home country’s businesses and consumers.
"Tariffs are what you do in the death throes of a nation," Griffin added, and said it "dulls" the competitive edge companies have.
The White House didn’t immediately respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
Shortly after Trump’s election win, Griffin had already hinted at his disdain for impending tariffs imposed by the reelected president.
“I am very anxious about the president’s willingness to engage in tariffs as a matter of trade policy,” Griffin said at the Oxford Union in the U.K. in mid-November. Even before that, Griffin had called Trump’s tariff policies “regretful,” although he conceded he thought the Trump administration would be good for markets.
So, while his overall stance on Trump appears complicated, Griffin seemed sure about one thing: Tariffs will have irreparable damage. The commotion they’ve caused has "a permanent and adverse effect," Griffin said, especially considering Trump’s “bombastic rhetoric.”
