Tesla dealerships in the crosshair as Elon Musk decries “evil attacks”
Tesla’s groundbreaking electric vehicles, once a symbol of forward-looking sustainability, are increasingly finding themselves as the target of public fanaticism.
Attack on property The logo carrying the Elon Musk electric car company is emerging in the United States and overseas. Although no injuries have been reported, the Tesla showroom, vehicles, charging stations and private cars are targets. In Canada, Tesla was removed from the International Auto Show due to safety concerns.
The Tesla attack has seen a significant increase since President Trump took office and authorized Musk to oversee new departments for government efficiency cuts in government spending. Domestic extremism experts say it is impossible to know whether a series of events will fall into long-term mode.
During Mr. Trump’s first term, his property in New York, Washington and elsewhere became a natural place of protest. Early in his second term, Tesla was filling in the role.
“Tesla is an easy target,” said Randy Blazak, a sociologist who studies political violence. “They roll on our streets. They have dealerships near us.”
Musk critics organized dozens of peaceful demonstrations at Tesla dealers and factories in North America and Europe. Some Tesla owners, Including U.S. Senators The people who argue with Musk vow to sell their vehicles.
Attack line
The attacks kept law enforcement busy. Colorado Attorney Accused of suspects Last month, it was linked to a series of attacks on Tesla dealerships, including the Molotov cocktail thrown on vehicles and the term “Nazi cars” sprayed on buildings. Only a few weeks, same Loveland, Colorado, dealership Target another ATTACK involves combustion devices.
Last week, South Carolina federal agents arrested a man who said they caught fire at a Tesla charging station near Charleston. Agents of alcohol, tobacco, guns and explosives wrote in an affidavit that authorities found works in bedrooms and purses on government and churches.
“The statement refers to sending information based on these beliefs,” the agency wrote.
There have been many of the most prominent events in the left-leaning cities of the Pacific Northwest, such as Portland, Oregon and Seattle, where anti-Trump and anti-Muske sentiment are rising.
An Oregon man allegedly threw several Molotov cocktails at a Tesla store in Salem before returning to another day and shooting the window. In the Portland suburb of Tigard, a dozen bullets were opened in Tesla’s showroom last week, damaging vehicles and windows, the store’s target for the week.
Earlier this month, four Seberaks caught fire in Seattle’s Tesla plot. Witnesses reported Friday that a man poured gasoline on an empty Tesla model and opened fire on Seattle Street.
Several Tesla vehicles in Las Vegas Burned earlier on Tuesday Outside the Tesla Service Center, the front door of the building is also painted with the word “resistant” in red. Authorities said at least one person threw the Molotov cocktail — a thick bomb with gasoline or other flammable liquid — and fired several rounds from the weapon into the vehicle.
“Is this terrorism? Is there anything else? It’s certainly some signs we might think of – writing on the wall, potential political agenda, a kind of act of violence,” Spencer Evans, a special agent at the Las Vegas FBI office, said in a news conference. “None of these factors are lost to us.”
Meanwhile, some Tesla owners in conservative countries are also facing vandalism, including a Texas man. Tesla has been key recently Parked at Dallas-Worth International Airport.
“I just bought it because it’s an electric car,” Dallas resident Jeff Nguyen tells CBS News Texas. “It’s fun to drive. It’s really nothing to do with politics or something like that.”
Tesla was once the darling of the left. During the Obama administration, the company helped survive with $465 million in federal loans, which promoted electric cars and proved their early reputation, but they didn’t have to be small, clumsy, under-functioning and limited range.
But recently, Musk has formed an alliance with rights. He bought Twitter, changed his name to X, and removed restrictions that irritated conservatives. He spent about $250 million to promote Mr. Trump’s 2024 Republican campaign, becoming his biggest benefactor to date.
Musk continues to run Tesla, as well as X and rocket maker SpaceX, while also serving as an adviser to Mr. Trump.
Tesla’s stock doubled its value in weeks after Trump’s election, but has since made all gains, falling 44% this year, attracting the attention of Wall Street analysts. Tesla’s brand awareness also shows Automobile Manufacturerand the company’s Sales decline in 2024 The first since 2015.
President Trump raised a push to the company when he turned the White House lane into an electric car showroom. The president promoted the vehicle and said he would buy the $80,000 model, avoiding his fierce criticism of electric vehicles.
Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. Musk briefly covered the disruptors on Monday’s appearance on Senator Ted Cruz’s podcast, saying “at least some of them are “a U.S. left-wing group, a U.S. left-wing group funded by left-wing billionaires, essentially.”
“This level of violence is a crazy and deep mistake,” Musk Written on Tuesday On X, a video of burning Tesla in Las Vegas was shared. “Tesla just makes electric cars and does not do any evil attacks it deserves.”
Progress Group has issued an indivisible supporter guide to organize the national “Muske or the United States” protests, and in a statement he said all its guidance is publicly available, “it explicitly encourages peaceful protests and condemns any violence or intended acts of violence.”
Some Tesla owners resort to cheeky bumper stickers to distance themselves from the new stigma of the vehicle and the stigma that may become a vandal. They said, “I bought it before we knew Elon was crazy” or “I just wanted an electric car. Sorry.”
According to Cargurus, the second-hand Cybertrucks, Tesla’s most unique product, has been priced nearly 8% since Trump took office. The entire market remained stable during this period.
“We’ll follow you”
The White House has left its weight behind Musk, the top prominent figure in the Trump administration and a major donor to the committee that promotes Mr. Trump’s political interests. Mr. Trump said Tesla’s destruction constituted “family terror” and he threatened retribution and warned those targeting the company that “will go through hell.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi said she had conducted an investigation: “Look at how this is funded and who is behind it.”
“If you’re going to run into Tesla, go to a dealer, do anything, you’d better be careful because we’re following you,” Bondy said on the Fox Business Network on Friday. statement On Tuesday, she called the attack “family terrorism” and vowed to “continue investigations that have serious consequences.”
Colin Clarke, a senior researcher at the Soufan Center, said left-wing political violence tends to target property rather than people. At this point, he believes that the rise of neo-Nazi organizations is a greater security threat.
“It’s not my priority behavior,” Clark said. “Compared with all the other threats out there, it’s not yet.”
Theresa Ramsdell is the president of Tesla owners, a club for Tesla enthusiasts, and she and her husband own three of them.
“Hate Elon and Ace you want – that’s good, Playboy, this is your choice,” she said. “It doesn’t prove to destroy someone’s property, destroy it, destroy it, burn it, set fire. There are other ways to make your voice more effective.”
Recently someone took a “Elon-free” sticker on Seberak’s tailgate, but she said she wasn’t going to stop driving a Tesla. Other club members have taken a similar view, she said.
“I love my car. It’s the safest car,” Ramsdell said. “I won’t let others judge me for the car I drive.”
