Boycotts and cars: Trump supports Musk as Tesla struggles

WASHINGTON: United States president Donald Trump took to social media on Tuesday to defend Elon Musk and his electric car company Tesla, in the face of boycotts and protests against the manufacturer erupting throughout the world.

How the boycotts began

Tesla faced its largest stock price decline in the past five years earlier this week, as sales in Europe for the month January are down about 45 per cent compared to the same period last year. Notably, Musk had recently begun openly supporting the Afd party, Germany’s far-right party with Nazi ties. His political involvement in Europe, which drew the criticism of world leaders such as Emmanuel Macron and Keir Starmer, coincides with the lower sales number, possibly indicating his actions are beginning to affect his business.

Similarly, Musk is drawing the ire of US citizens and facing backlash at home through his Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) enforcement of workforce cuts, which has targeted: the Department of Veteran Affairs, the Defence Department, the Education Department, the Energy Department, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Homeland Security, the Internal Revenue Service, the National Park Service, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Agriculture Department, the Agency for International Development, the Department of Justice, and the State Department.

Many began to showcase their discontent with Musk’s far-right politics last month, as social media hashtags #TeslaTakedown and #TeslaTakeover began gaining traction online, and slogans including “Deport Musk” and “Resist the oligarchy” were shouted during protests outside a San Francisco Tesla showrooms. A showroom in the Hague and a factory in Germany have also been subjected to vandalism.

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Trump’s response

As stock prices plummeted, Trump took to Truth Social to put an end to what he defined as an “illegal” boycott.

“To Republicans, Conservatives, and all great Americans, Elon Musk is “putting it on the line” in order to help our Nation, and he is doing a FANTASTIC JOB! But the Radical Left Lunatics, as they often do, are trying to illegally and collusively boycott Tesla, one of the World’s great automakers, and Elon’s “baby,” in order to attack and do harm to Elon, and everything he stands for.”

Trump’s assertion regarding the legality of the protests ignores the liberties granted by a 1982 Supreme Court decision, concerning a boycott of white merchants launched by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which found that “the nonviolent elements of the protesters’ activities are entitled to the protection of the First Amendment”

The president went on to draw a parallel between Musk and himself, stating that “they tried to do it to me at the 2024 Presidential Ballot Box, but how did that work out?”

Trump then stated he would be buying a Tesla in a show of solidarity. He then posted a video in which he played out buying a Tesla while stood next to Musk. After claiming that it was a “great product”, Trump went on to praise Musk for his dedication, and pity him for the way he has been treated.

“You can’t be penalised for being a patriot, and he’s a great patriot,” the president said, adding shortly after that the “country is going to be very strong very soon because of a lot of the things that [Musk’s done] and what I’ve done.”

In another post featuring a continuation of the same video, Musk stated that he would be doubling vehicle output in the US within the next two years, an announcement that earned a couple supportive pats on the back from president Trump.  

Following the president’s show of support, Tesla’s stock rose 5 per cent on Tuesday. However, that was but a fraction of the 15 per cent it lost just a day earlier. Time will tell if people continue to make their voices heard and Musk continues to suffer from the backlash. Currently, despite Trump’s support and the slight rise in price, Tesla stock is still on pace to fall this week, according to Investopedia.

“Why should [Musk] be punished for putting his tremendous skills to work in order to help MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN???”

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