Musk's Sudden Support for Trump: "Because of Biden's 'Neglect'"

Deliberate Ignoring at 2021 Electric Vehicle Event
WSJ: "Because the White House Was Mindful of UAW"

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, declared his support for former President Donald Trump due to being ignored by the White House, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 28th (local time).

In early 2021, the Biden administration began planning to promote electric vehicles. At that time, two-thirds of the electric vehicles produced in the United States came from Tesla.

Elon Musk Tesla CEO [Photo by EPA Yonhap News]

According to WSJ sources, Tesla executives contacted the White House multiple times in an effort to arrange communication between President Biden and CEO Musk. However, Musk, who said in a television interview that he only voted for Biden and the Democratic Party, continued to be ignored.

According to close aides of President Biden, the White House was mindful of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union at the time. The UAW pressured the White House to keep distance from CEO Musk. Tesla is the only major American automaker that maintains a non-unionized management system. Some labor practices were also under investigation by regulatory authorities at the time.

In August 2021, President Biden organized an electric vehicle event to sign an executive order aiming for half of all new cars sold by 2030 to be zero-emission vehicles. However, CEO Musk was not invited to the event, and White House officials called Tesla just before the event to apologize.

The White House invited executives from General Motors (GM), Ford, and Stellantis instead of Tesla. These companies all lagged behind Tesla in the electric vehicle sector and employed thousands of UAW members.

The situation rapidly deteriorated afterward. In November 2021, while promoting a new infrastructure bill, President Biden said, "Detroit is leading the world in electric vehicles." He also praised GM CEO Mary Barra, saying, "You have electrified the entire automotive industry."

CEO Musk and Tesla executives were furious. In the fourth quarter of 2021, Tesla supplied over 115,000 electric vehicles in the U.S., while GM delivered only 26.

After another event in 2022 where Biden praised GM and Ford's electric vehicle efforts, a Twitter user criticized Tesla's exclusion. Musk responded by calling Biden "a damp puppet in human form."

Brian Deese, then a senior advisor to President Biden, called Rohan Patel, Tesla's global vice president of public policy and business development at the time, requesting a call with CEO Musk. During a phone call with Deese and Ron Klain, Biden's chief of staff, Musk complained that President Biden was misrepresenting facts about electric vehicles and not recognizing Tesla's market-leading role. Both promised to listen to Musk's concerns and relay them to the President. Congressman Ro Khanna, whose district includes Silicon Valley, also tried to bring Musk back into the fold.

However, Musk felt not only excluded by the White House but also harassed. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the Biden administration demanded Musk submit internal communications and information related to layoffs, and the Department of Justice sued SpaceX over hiring discrimination allegations. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) denied Starlink a $900 million rural broadband subsidy. Sources said Musk viewed these actions as politically motivated.

The authorities stated that no political motives were involved in these actions. The White House also denied any role in these measures.

Since then, CEO Musk has been closer to the Republican Party rather than the Democrats. He is known to meet regularly with House Speaker Mike Johnson and others.

His relationship with former President Donald Trump is also recovering. Musk was critical during Trump's administration, even commenting on the serious issue of "gerontocracy" in U.S. politics. However, recently, he declared his support for Trump.

Former President Trump has also emphasized Musk's support during recent campaign rallies, showcasing their relationship.