Trump Holds Bizarre, Rambling Tesla Commercial at White House
Against federal regulation, Donald Trump is using the influence of the White House to boost Tesla sales.
Several Tesla vehicles were parked in the White House driveway Tuesday while the president practically hosted a commercial for Elon Musk’s car company. Trump was joined by Musk and his son as the president answered reporters’ questions about his sudden affinity for the electric vehicle.
“I’m going to buy because number one, it’s a great product,” Trump told reporters. “It’s as good as it gets. And number two, because this man has devoted his energy and his life to doing this. I think he’s been treated very unfairly by a very small group of people.”
“You can’t be penalized for being a patriot,” Trump said. “People should be going wild.”
But despite his adoration for the vehicle and the man who owns its factories, Trump won’t be driving it.
“I’m not allowed to drive because I haven’t driven a car in a long time,” Trump said. “I love to drive cars. But I’m going to have it at the White House, and I’m going to let my staff use it, I’m going to let people at the place use it.”
“I’m not allowed to use it,” the president repeated.
Trump proceeded to ooh and ahh over his new car, including getting inside and announcing, “Everything’s computer!”
But the strange showcase is evidence that the global Tesla boycott is making an impact. Tesla stock is down by 45 percent so far this year, and analysts have faulted Musk’s reputational shift for the automaker’s financial woes.
Tesla historically attracted a more liberal consumer base with its electric vehicles, but since Musk went “dark MAGA,” that same base has soured on the tech billionaire and his products. That’s proven especially true in some of Europe’s stronger economies, such as Germany, which has seen sales in the country fall by more than 70 percent over the last two months, reported Bloomberg. Sales in China—where Tesla has two major factories—have similarly plummeted, falling by 49 percent in February.
On Monday, the automaker’s stock had its worst day since 2020, as its Musk-induced problems coincided with historic market volatility under Trump’s new tariff plans and further instability caused by the Musk-induced mass layoffs across government.
In a Truth Social post Monday, Trump claimed that the boycott was unlawful, writing that “radical left lunatics” were “illegally and collusively” attacking the company.
Fact check: Boycotts are not illegal and are protected by the First Amendment in the Constitution. The Supreme Court affirmed Americans’ rights to protest private businesses in a landmark 1982 case, NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co.
But U.S. regulations do prohibit federal employees from using their public office to benefit themselves, their friends, families, or affiliates “for the endorsement of any product, service or enterprise.”
Still, it’s not the first time that Trump has used the prestige of the Oval Office to push product. In the midst of the pandemic, the president and his daughter Ivanka used their federal platform to shill beans for Goya, amid nationwide calls to boycott the company after its CEO said the country was “blessed” to have Trump as its leader. The stunt came during a push by the Trumps to increase the president’s appeal with Latino voters ahead of the 2020 election.