It was billed as an “interview” with presidential candidate Donald Trump but billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk used the Monday night event on social media service X to promote the benefits of EVs – those from Tesla, in particular. It’s no easy sell, at least to the former president’s followers.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk first worked with Trump on a business panel in 2017.
After a series of technical glitches, Elon Musk held a widely promoted interview with Republic presidential nominee Donald Trump on Monday night, an event that covered a wide range of topics that included one of particular interest to Musk: battery-electric vehicles.
The never-subtle Trump has long been what might charitably be called an EV “skeptic.” In June, he harshly criticized both battery vehicles and Biden administration mandates during a campaign rally. But the former president sounded a more conciliatory note a week ago, declaring, “I’m for electric cars,” at another campaign in Georgia.
Whether that shift will make a difference to Trump’s followers – who are generally negative on EVs, according to surveys – is unclear. But Musk clearly seems to be betting on that as evidence mounts that the billionaire entrepreneur’s own shift to the political right is hurting sales at Tesla.
“Your product is incredible”
Trump has traditionally opposed sustainable energy initiatives, including EVs.
If anyone expected to see Musk toss any hardball questions at Trump – or for the former president to respond with his typical disdain for the media – they were likely disappointed by the Monday night event. Billed as an “interview,” it was more a conversation among two fans of one another aiming to promote similar viewpoints.
And, on the subject of EVs, Trump was much more upbeat than at any time since he began his first run for the White House nearly a decade ago. Tesla, he told Musk, makes a “great product.”
“That doesn’t mean everybody should have an electric car, but these are minor details,” he continued, adding that, “your product is incredible.”
About-face
Trump has become much more pro-EV since Musk announced $180 million in campaign support.
Why the seeming about-face? Skeptics have been pointing to not just Musk’s strong support of Trump on the former Twitter social media service but the $180 million in campaign support the billionaire has promised for the Trump campaign through a new political action committee.
The candidate made that clear during his Georgia rally earlier this month.
“I’m for electric cars. I have to be because, you know, Elon endorsed me very strongly,” a reference to Tesla CEO Elon Musk. “So, I have no choice,” Trump said.
Even so, Trump continues to harbor reservations, notably about the Biden administration’s EV sales mandates and incentives.
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Musk gets his own points across
Musk used the interview with Trump to speak positively about EVs.
While the ostensible focus of the Monday night interview was Trump and his campaign, Musk clearly used the event to pitch some of his own views, even on subjects where the two men have disagreed in the past.
Trump, for example, has faulted renewable energy – even declaring that wind turbines cause cancer – while promoting coal. He attempted to roll back vehicle mileage standards during his time in the White House and in Georgia again said he will “get rid of” Biden’s EV mandates. Trump also has indicated he will end federal subsidies for both EV sales and the development of a public charging network.
Musk, for his part, tried to strike a more positive note, Monday telling listeners that, “I don’t think we should vilify people for it, but I think we should just, just generally lean in the direction of, of sustainability.” That appeared to be directed towards Musk followers who tend to be far more critical, not only of EVs but environmental issues, in general.
“We don’t need to, to rush and, and we don’t need to like, you know, stop farmers from farming or, you know, prevent people from having steaks,” Musk added.
Tesla in the crosshairs
Tesla sales have fallen this year and some analysts directly connect that to Musk’s political turn to the right.
Musk’s increasing support for Trump and his political views has coincided with a sharp downturn in Tesla’s fortunes. After years of growth in both sales and earnings, Tesla sales fell 8.5% during the first quarter of 2024, followed by a 5% year-over-year decline for the second quarter.
While there are no “hard data,” there is growing “anecdotal evidence” that Musk’s shift to the political right – especially on X – has played a role in the decline, Sam Abuelsamid, principal auto analyst for Guidehouse Insights, told Headlight.News.
He is not the only observer suggesting a connection between Tesla’s downturn and Musk’s politics. Significantly, the now Texas-based automaker’s shortfall came at a time when other manufacturers – such as Volkswagen, Ford and Hyundai – have continued seeing a sizable upturn in EV sales. China’s BYD is now in a tight race with Tesla to earn bragging rights as the best-selling global EV carmaker.
Will Trump – Musk alliance help EVs?
Opposition to Musk’s political turn may be positioning Rivian as the “anti-Tesla.”
Part of the problem, said Abuelsamid, is that Musk has been attacking the politics shared by a large percentage of EV buyers. But those who favor that shift tend to be strongly anti-EV.
Surveys by both Third Way and The NewDeal earlier this year found 44% of Americans holding negative views on electric vehicles. They also tend to be more likely to support conservative causes and candidates.
One can find plenty of anti-Musk memes on the Internet, and there’s growing evidence that one-time Tesla fans are going elsewhere. A recent report on the Bloomberg news service dubbed EV start-up Rivian the “anti-Tesla,” noting how it has begun drawing in buyers who would have likely bought a Tesla in the past.
Whether Trump’s growing ties to Musk will help soften conservative opposition to EVs is far from certain. And even if the candidate becomes more pro-EV it’s unclear whether that will help Tesla, in particular.
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