Tesla is no longer hot, the president says.
After playing influencer-in-chief and hosting a car show in the South Lawn of the White House for the brand in March, Donald Trump is considering getting rid of his red Tesla, a day after his public spat with his close adviser and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
A White House official confirmed on background June 6 that Trump no longer wants the Tesla Model S he bought in March in a show of support for the company after incidents of vandalism at Tesla dealerships across the country.
The electric car, worth about $80,000 new, still sits in the White House parking lot.
Trump said he was “very disappointed” with Musk, who served as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, a position from which Trump revealed Musk was asked to leave last month.
“Elon was wearing thin,” Trump posted on Truth Social, seemingly indicating that Musk had worn out his welcome.
Musk lobbed a series of online jabs at Trump’s signature tax and spending bill after he left the White House, calling it a “disgusting abomination” and asking Americans to tell their representatives in Washington to “Kill the Bill.”
Trump said Musk was upset about electric vehicle subsidies from the bill that would have benefited Tesla.
The Congressional Budget Office has said the bill would lead to an increase of $2.4 trillion in total deficits over the next 10 years, a figure Trump has disputed.
The feud reached an apparent point of no return after Musk accused Trump of being named in classified files on financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
A White House official told USA TODAY on background on June 6 that Trump had no plans to have any contact with Musk.
Throughout his tenure as the cost-cutting czar, Musk has suffered ongoing losses for the car company. His deep cuts to federal staffing and programs spurred “Tesla Takedown” protests, with Tesla owners being harassed and multiple dealerships across the United States being vandalized. On March 11, Tesla’s stock price plummeted 15%, the greatest one-day drop in five years.
In the aftermath of the June 6 feud, Tesla’s stock price fell 14% but showed signs of rebounding on Friday by 5%, trading at $300 on NASDAQ at 10:50 a.m.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump wants to dump his red Tesla
