Elon Musk is not pleased with Tesla’s current public perception. The billionaire recently spoke up against people who are persistent in boycotting Tesla. Musk labeled the people as “mentally ill” and expressed his displeasure at the recent turn of events.
Tesla stocks have continuously plummeted since the beginning of the year. Several protests have been carried out in front of multiple showrooms of Tesla’s. People have even gone as far as vandalizing Tesla vehicles that have been parked in the streets.
Experts claim that Musk’s association with Donald Trump plays a major part in the company’s stock hitting an all-time low. Dan Ives who serves as a financial analyst at Wedbush Securities noted how Tesla is now being viewed as a “political symbol.”
“Tesla is becoming a political symbol of Trump and DOGE, and that is a bad thing for the brand,” the expert explained, as reported by PBS. The company being associated with DOGE might serve as its biggest downfall. Public perception of Musk started dropping when he ordered the mass firing of federal employees, leaving people extremely frustrated.
Elon Musk finally addressed the backlash in an interview with Sean Hannity. In the Fox interview, the SpaceX CEO claimed “dark forces at work” while discussing the fall in Tesla stock price.
“It turns out when you take away the money they’re receiving fraudulently they get very upset,” he said in another interview. The billionaire also claimed that people wanted to “kill him” because he wanted to put an end to their “fraud.”
Tesla is falling apart, and even Elon Musk seems to know it.
Keep up the great work,
continue to boycott Tesla! pic.twitter.com/Dg8xUhTeeg
— Tor Elvenes🇧🇻 (@ElvenesTor) March 14, 2025
“They want to hurt Tesla because we’re stopping this terrible waste and corruption in the government and I guess they’re bad people,” Musk noted referring to the work DOGE has been doing. “Bad people will do bad things,” he concluded.
Ross Gerber who is one of Tesla’s first investors recently spoke out about replacing Musk as the CEO. “I think Tesla needs a new CEO and I decided today I was going to start saying it and so this is the first show that I’m saying it on,” he said in a conversation with Sky News. Gerber pointed out that the company had been “neglected” for too long and needed somebody new who would run it.
He added how Tesla is doing “important things” that need the CEO’s active involvement. Gerber concluded by giving Musk an ultimatum to return or resign from his position. The investor asked Musk to either “come back” and “give up his other jobs” or “focus on the government.”
Trump and his Tesla pic.twitter.com/FP7i12dKS9
— Morning Brew ☕️ (@MorningBrew) March 11, 2025
Through it all, Donald Trump has stood by his buddy like a true pillar. The President even took to Truth Social to express his frustration over the boycott. In a post, Trump noted how Tesla was being boycotted unfairly. He also blamed the “Radical Left Lunatics” for “illegally and collusively” boycotting the company.
Trump even bought a brand-new Tesla to show his support for the automakers. The President even gushed continuously about Musk in a press conference that was held in front of the White House. Trump credited Elon for being a “great guy” and a “patriot.”
