Anti-DOGE protests at Tesla stores target Elon Musk's bottom line
[March 03, 2025] By
RODRIQUE NGOWI and JONATHAN J. COOPER
BOSTON (AP) — Demonstrators gathered outside Tesla stores across the
U.S. Saturday to protest the automaker's billionaire CEO, Elon Musk, and
his push to slash government spending on behalf of President Donald
Trump.
The demonstrations are part of a growing backlash in North America and
Europe to Musk's disruptive role in Washington.
Critics of Trump and Musk hope to discourage and stigmatize purchases of
Tesla, the electric car company that is the world's most valuable
automaker. Liberal groups for weeks have organized anti-Tesla protests
in hopes of galvanizing opposition to Musk's Department of Government
Efficiency and energizing Democrats still demoralized by Trump's
November victory.
“We can get back at Elon,” said Nathan Phillips, a 58-year-old ecologist
from Newton, Massachusetts, who was protesting in Boston on Saturday.
“We can impose direct economic damage on Tesla by showing up at
showrooms everywhere and boycotting Tesla and telling everyone else to
get out, sell your stocks, sell your Teslas.”
Musk is taking direction from Trump to slash federal spending and
sharply reduce the workforce, arguing that Trump's victory gave the
president and him a mandate to restructure the U.S. government. DOGE
officials have swiftly gained access to sensitive databases, directed
thousands of federal job cuts, canceled contracts and shut down sections
of the government, including the U.S. Agency for International
Development.
Musk's critics say his actions defy Congress's power to control the U.S.
budget and present a host of ways for him to enrich himself. Musk leads
several other companies, notably SpaceX, which conducts launches for
NASA and the intelligence community, and the social media platform X.
“Protests will not deter President Trump and Elon Musk from delivering
on the promise to establish DOGE and make our federal government more
efficient and more accountable to the hardworking American taxpayers
across the country," said White House spokesperson Harrison Fields.
Tesla did not respond to an emailed request for comment.
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Protesters rally outside of a Tesla store in Boston, Saturday, March
1, 2025, against the company's CEO, Elon Musk, who is leading an
effort to cut government jobs on behalf of President Donald Trump.
(AP Photo/Rodrique Ngowi)
 More than 50 demonstrations were
listed Saturday on the website Tesla Takedown, with more planned
later in March from coast to coast in the United States along with
England, Spain and Portugal. News reports showed demonstrations in
recent days in U.S. cities including Tucson, Arizona; St. Louis; New
York City; Dayton, Ohio; Charlotte; and Palo Alto, California.
Some Tesla owners have also reported their vehicles vandalized with
spray painted swastikas amid what Jewish groups and observers fear
is a rise in antisemitism.
Federal prosecutors charged a woman in connection with a string of
vandalism against a Colorado Tesla dealership, which included
Molotov cocktails being thrown at vehicles and the words “Nazi cars”
spray painted on the building.
Saturday's demonstration in Boston had a festive atmosphere, with a
brass band playing music as protesters carried signs and chanted.
Several of the signs mocked Musk and DOGE, with one reading: “Stop
Elon and his despicable Muskrats.”
“This government led by Trump and Musk, it’s gone completely off the
rails and we are here to stop that,” said Carina Campobasso, a
retired federal worker. “And I hope they listen.”
About 300 demonstrators protested at a Tesla dealership in New York
City on Saturday. Police said nine people were taken into custody
but did not elaborate on the charges they faced.
Tesla's share price has fallen by nearly a third since Trump took
office, though it's still higher than it was a year ago. Musk’s
current net worth is an estimated $359 billion, according to Forbes,
which calculated his 2024 net worth as $195 billion.
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