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The Wise Men of Wall Street Sound Off on Trump

A survey of industry machers on the Elon factor, the yet-to-materialize investment banking boom, Treasury troubles, that $2 trillion deficit, and the good ideas hiding inside the White House’s agenda.

Richard Haass
Haass urged Americans to come up with meaningful alternatives to Trump’s thrusts, not just criticisms. Photo: Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg/Getty Images
William D. Cohan
February 20, 2025

I’ve long promised myself that, during Trump II, I would not fall into the trap of obsessing over the president’s relentless efforts to be “disruptive” or to “own the libs.” We’ve seen this show before, although the encore seems decidedly more unhinged, and there are close to zero “adults in the room” this time around. If you were counting on Marco Rubio or Scott Bessent to put the brakes on, don’t bother. Ditto the U.S. business leaders who occasionally served as conscientious objectors during Trump I. Stakeholder capitalism is out. Fiduciary duty is in.