On Point | Podcast The power of the golden share
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Jul 7, 2025 Todd Tucker is the Director of Industrial Policy at the Roosevelt Institute and a senior research fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School. Joining him is Fabio Bulfone, an assistant professor at Leiden University specializing in the political economy of industrial policy. They discuss the controversial 'golden share' that allows the U.S. government a say in private industry decisions, especially in mergers like that of Nippon Steel and U.S. Steel. Their conversation covers the implications for American jobs, national security, and the balance between government control and free market principles.
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Golden Share: Control Without Ownership
- The golden share grants the U.S. government veto power over key business decisions in U.S. Steel despite private ownership.
- This control stops short of full socialism because the government doesn’t own the company or its profits.
Trump’s Personalized Golden Share
- The golden share provision uniquely names Donald J. Trump as the decision-maker while he is president.
- This personalization contrasts with typical, technocratic government control and raises governance concerns.
Thatcher's Golden Share Origins
- Margaret Thatcher pioneered the golden share in the 1980s to privatize strategic industries with government control safeguards.
- These shares act more as a deterrent to foreign takeovers than active government ownership.