Here's a Rundown on Trump's New Economic Team
Policy + Politics

Here's a Rundown on Trump's New Economic Team

JONATHAN ERNST

Trump said he would deliver a speech on his economic policy plan on Monday.

Here are some facts on members of his economic team:

JOHN PAULSON, HEDGE FUND MANAGER

Paulson is best known on Wall Street for his bet against the overheated housing market in 2007 that netted him and his investors billions of dollars in profits. But Paulson’s calls on stocks and the economy have been less accurate lately. His investments have lost some $15 billion in assets in the last five years, leaving his Paulson & Co Inc hedge fund with roughly $13 billion at the end of June. He is known for making contrarian bets and being patient.

He has been one of only a handful of hedge fund managers to have publicly endorsed Trump, with many others saying privately that they are still on the fence or leaning toward his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton.

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STEVE FEINBERG, PRIVATE EQUITY FUND MANAGER

Feinberg is chief executive officer of Cerberus Capital Management LP, a private equity firm he co-founded in 1992.

He headed the investment firm during its failed takeover of automaker Chrysler in 2007. The investment firm served as Chrysler's majority owner until the troubled car maker was restructured in a government-sponsored bankruptcy in 2009.

Feinberg had promised to revive the company, according to a New York Times profile, but instead lost billions. Feinberg has defended his role to try to save the carmaker. He ultimately had to appeal to Washington for help.

DAVID MALPASS, FORMER TREASURY, STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL

Malpass served under two previous Republican administrations, first as a deputy assistant Treasury secretary for President Ronald Reagan and later as a deputy assistant Secretary of State for President George H.W. Bush.

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Malpass, in a CNBC interview on Friday, called for greater infrastructure spending as well as tax cuts, trade reform, regulatory reform and energy reform, although he gave few specfics. "We need more effective spending, and Trump wants to do that - to have stronger finances for the country," he said.

Malpass has been a vocal critic of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s monetary policy since the financial crisis, in particular its large bond holdings.

Malpass, who was also chief economist at investment bank Bear Stearns, now runs Encima Global Llc, an investment consulting firm.

PETER NAVARRO, PROFESSOR

Navarro is the only adviser on the list with a Ph.D. in economics, and the only one who has spent most of his life as an academic. He earned his doctorate at Harvard University and is now a professor of economics and public policy at the University of California, Irvine's business school.

Navarro has written nine books, three of them critical about China’s effect on the rest of the world, including “Death by China: Confronting the Dragon – A Global Call to Action.” He thinks the United States should be tougher on trade and intellectual property theft, and has proposed slapping a 45 percent tariff on Chinese imports.

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Navarro recently wrote in an opinion piece in the Los Angeles Times that Trump would crack down on any country “that cheats on its trade deals using practices such as currency manipulation and illegal export subsidies.”

HOWARD LORBER, HOLDING COMPANY CEO

Lorber is president and CEO of holding company Vector Group Ltd, whose three subsidiaries make cigarettes as well as e-cigarettes. It also operates two real estate subsidiaries: a real estate investment company and a real estate brokerage firm.

A fellow New Yorker, Trump's campaign has mentioned Lorber as one of Trump's best friends.

The two traveled together to Russia in the 1990s, according to news reports.

STEVEN MNUCHIN, INVESTMENT MANAGER

A former partner at Goldman Sachs Group Inc who now works in entertainment financing, Mnuchin is chairman and CEO of private investment firm Dune Capital Management LP.

Trump named Mnuchin, who had a long history of political donations to Democrats, including to Hillary Clinton, as his finance chair in May.

Mnuchin has said he has had a personal and professional relationship with Trump for more than 15 years.

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DAN DIMICCO, FORMER STEEL EXECUTIVE

DiMicco is the former chief executive and executive chairman of steel producer Nucor Corp, one of the biggest U.S. steelmakers.

His outspoken push for tougher U.S. trade policies to support domestic manufacturing and his fierce anti-China rhetoric have made him one of the most high-profile executives in the steel industry.

In recent years, he has taken his campaign for new trade rules online and has publicly endorsed Trump's call for a tougher approach on trade.

"You don't win a Trade War with appeasement or more Free Trade agreements," DiMicco wrote in a July 10 blog post on his website, www.dandimicco.com.

STEPHEN MOORE, FOUNDER, CLUB FOR GROWTH

Moore is one of the leading conservative economic voices in the United States. He embraces tax cuts as key to economic growth, as well as free trade and immigration reform.

Moore founded the anti-tax advocacy group Club for Growth, where he served until he left the organization in 2004. He later served as a member of The Wall Street Journal editorial board.

He is currently a fellow at the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation, focusing on economic growth.

TOM BARRACK, REAL ESTATE FINANCIER

Barrack is a longtime friend of Trump and a fellow hotel developer.

He is the founder and executive chairman of private equity firm Colony Capital Inc and is co-chairman of the board of trustees of Colony Starwood Homes.

Barrack spoke out in favor of Trump at the Republican National Convention in July, but afterwards his company announced it was dropping out of Trump's Old Post Office hotel project in Washington, according to a report in The Washington Post.

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