One of the most notorious power brokers in U.S. history, Robert Moses, has had his life studied by politicians on both sides of the aisle, all thanks to the work of journalist Robert Caro in his Pulitzer-Prize-winning biography: The Power Broker.
In the early 1910s, all the way up to the time of Governor Nelson Rockefeller, Robert Moses accrued enormous power in New York — and abused it. Caro’s book on his life tells the story of a man from privilege who never cared about the consequences of his actions and believed his vision was best.
What did Moses want done in New York City to start? A more “efficient” government. Less bureaucratic fat clogging up the works. A century later, Elon Musk has taken a similar approach, slashing bureaucracy in the name of efficiency — most notably in his role founding: the Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
The Power Broker: Instruction Manual or Warning Label?
Politicians as ideologically distinct as Newt Gingrich and Barack Obama have called The Power Broker immensely impactful on their early careers — perhaps for different reasons.
For minds like Gingrich and Musk, it may have been an instruction manual. For Obama, a warning: there are men like Moses who seek and abuse power because they’ve had the privilege all their lives to act without consequence.
In 2010, then-President Obama awarded 76-year-old Caro one of the nation’s highest literary honors. “I read it when I was young and just starting my career in public service,” Obama said at the time. “It helped me understand power in America.”
Musk and Moses: Destined For Same Fate?
While it may be argued Musk’s early actions as Trump’s right-hand man mirror Moses’ approach to cutting government workers, it remains to be seen whether his plans will proceed as seamlessly as Moses’.
Am I overreaching in this analysis, speculating too much on what Obama did or did not take away from the book? If you have thoughts, please send me an email: aem2317@columbia.edu
Ashley Elizabeth Miller 
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