Trump Says Tesla Dealership Attacks Should Be Called Domestic Terrorism

On Tuesday, President Donald Trump said he would label attacks on Tesla dealerships as acts of domestic terrorism after “Tesla Takedown” protests and a sharp 15 percent drop in Tesla’s stock on Monday — the company’s worst trading day since 2020.

Speaking alongside Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who brought several vehicles to the White House for Trump to pose for photos with, Trump said that he thinks that Musk has “been treated very unfairly by a very small group of people, and I just want people to know that he can’t be penalized for being a patriot.”

Trump had recently announced that he plans to buy a Tesla in support of Musk, who has gained significant influence over the U.S. government. In a Truth Social post, Trump praised Musk, saying he was “putting it on the line” for the country and doing a “fantastic” job. “I’m going to buy a brand new Tesla tomorrow morning as a show of confidence and support for Elon Musk, a truly great American,” Trump added. Trump also accused “radical left lunatics” of boycotting Tesla in an “illegal and collusive” manner.

Elon Musk told Fox Business in a Monday interview that he was managing his various businesses “with great difficulty.” On Monday, Tesla shares fell more than $40, shrinking Musk’s net worth by approximately $18.8 billion.

“Tesla has dipped below the amount it was on election day. We must keep going till it is worthless,” civil rights attorney Alejandra Caraballo said on Bluesky. Caraballo recently shared Musk’s “DOGE” government email on X and subsequently had her account suspended for so-called “doxxing.”

Tesla’s stock has plummeted nearly 50 percent over the past three months as Musk’s vocal support for right wing politics and his controversial “DOGE” takeover have alienated parts of the company’s customer base. The company’s downward trajectory has accelerated after Musk traveled to Washington to embrace his self-proclaimed role as “First Buddy,” prompting mass layoffs, department closures, property sales, deep budget cuts and concerns over access to the sensitive data of millions of Americans.

In response to these actions — along with Musk’s nazi-like salute at Trump’s inauguration rally — Tesla vehicles, including Cybertrucks, have been dubbed “Swasticars.” A viral social media image tagged #TeslaTakedown features Musk alongside a ghostly outline of Adolf Hitler, and is captioned: “When you ride Tesla you ride with Hitler!”

Demonstrators have protested Musk by vandalizing Tesla charging stations, setting them on fire, and spray-painting “Nazi” on vehicles. One woman also threw Molotov cocktails at Tesla dealerships. Last week, gunshots were fired at a Tesla showroom, damaging four vehicles and breaking windows. Authorities noted that while the motive remains unclear, similar attacks on Tesla dealerships have occurred across the country “for political reasons.”

“The actions taken against Tesla are a thermometer for the country. It started with some protests and vandalism. It’s now arson of chargers,” Caraballo said on Bluesky. “The worse this gets, the more this country is ready to explode into violence.”

Some Tesla owners have begun altering and attempting to return their vehicles. According to The Guardian, after Musk’s Nazi-like salute, a Tesla owner whose grandmother survived the Holocaust called her mother and said, “I’m selling the Nazi mobile.” Another Tesla owner said they felt “nothing but utter disgust” after Musk’s fascist-style salute, adding that they “no longer enjoyed sitting in my Tesla.” Another Tesla owner told The Guardian that he “happily paid $4,000 to get rid of that car” after struggling to sell it.