Elon Musk recently told those gathered at the Morgan Stanley Technology Media & Telecom conference that anything that can be privatized should be privatized.
Among the agencies Musk would like to see privatized are Amtrak and the U.S. Postal Service.
“I think we should privatize anything that can be privatized, just so you’ve got a feedback loop for improvement, which is what happens when something’s privatized,” Musk said. “Basically, something’s got to have some chance of going bankrupt, or there’s not a good feedback loop for improvement.”
Musk criticized Amtrak, calling it "embarrassing."
“Amtrak is a sad situation. If you’re coming from another country, please don’t use our national rail. It can leave you with a very bad impression of America,” Musk said.
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Amtrak says it operates at a net loss and relies on federal subsidies to cover losses.
When President Joe Biden took office in 2021, he announced plans to bolster Amtrak service. While in office, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, which earmarked over $22 billion in improvements to Amtrak service. Biden called for creating 30 new routes, adding more trips on 20 existing routes, and extending service to 160 new communities.
"We have a history of recurring operating losses and are dependent on grants from the Federal Government to operate the national passenger rail system and maintain the underlying infrastructure. These grants are usually received through annual appropriations. Appropriated funds for Amtrak are generally provided to the United States Department of Transportation, which, through its agency the Federal Railroad Administration, provides us those funds pursuant to annual grant agreements. If we do not receive sufficient Federal Government funding, the ability to operate in the current form may be adversely affected," Amtrak said.
The Postal Service largely relies on the fees it collects from users to remain self-funded. However, according to a 2024 Congressional Budget Office report, the USPS receives about $50 million to provide some reduced-cost services.
In 2022, Biden signed a $50 billion package to help USPS cover benefits for retirees.
