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WASHINGTON – After electric car and truck maker Tesla took a beating on the stock market Monday, dropping 40.52 points during the trading day, President Donald Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social to announce he will buy “a brand new Tesla” to show “confidence and support” for Elon Musk.
Musk is leading Trump’s efforts to downsize the federal government and has been CEO of Tesla since 2008. As chief hatchet man, Musk has been photographed wielding a chain saw. In recent weeks, though, Tesla has seen its sales crash, notably in Europe, and Tesla owners have seen their car vandalized. Protests against Tesla have been staged across the country..
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In a post, Trump accused “Radical Left Lunatics” of “trying to illegally and collusively boycott Tesla, one of the World’s great automakers.” He said Musk is “putting it on the line in order to help our Nation, and he is doing a FANTASTIC JOB!”
Trump wrote that he planned to buy a Tesla on Tuesday morning.
In heading Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (or DOGE) effort, Musk has engaged in mass layoffs. His tactics have turned off many drivers, including Tesla owners, and resulted in the sharp tumble of Tesla stock over the past three months.
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A recent unscientific RIDE-CT poll of viewers of its YouTube channel buttressed reports of Tesla’s declining popularity. Only 15 percent of respondents said their opinion of the company “Hasn’t changed. “Still think Tesla is a good brand,” while 37 percent voted that their image of the company “Has changed so much that no way now will I ever purchase a Tesla.”
An additional 5 percent said that their open of Tesla has “changed. Has gone from positive to negative.”
A total of 44 percent reported that their opinion hasn’t changed; that they’re “Still not a fan of EVs.”
