Elon Musk

[Max Peck]

Leon is no Bond villain. He's more of a Dr. Claw -- but, sadly, we have no Inspector Gadget to foil his schemes.

[Kurth]

I wonder when the split between Trump and Musk will come. How much longer can Trump stomach Musk getting all the attention and being treated as the most powerful player in Washington?

That depends on how much Trump dirt he can dig up as he goes through the entirety of the US government data. If he gets the right files before that happens, Musk will be in charge.

Hold up: What “dirt” do you think would be sufficient to create real leverage over Trump?

I mean, are we going to find out that he’s secretly a convicted felon tied to activity involving paying off a porn star? Or did he associate with known sex traffickers behind closed doors? Or, in a secret double-life, was he found liable for sexual assault himself, and are there tapes out there recording him bragging about grabbing women in the pussy? Did he have an affair? Was he forced into bankruptcy multiple times?

I mean, seriously, what “dirt” could have an impact on Donald Trump? I really can’t think of anything.

[stessier]

And thus we have the mythical defamation proof client.

[LawBeefaroni]

I wonder when the split between Trump and Musk will come. How much longer can Trump stomach Musk getting all the attention and being treated as the most powerful player in Washington?

That depends on how much Trump dirt he can dig up as he goes through the entirety of the US government data. If he gets the right files before that happens, Musk will be in charge.

Hold up: What “dirt” do you think would be sufficient to create real leverage over Trump?

I mean, are we going to find out that he’s secretly a convicted felon tied to activity involving paying off a porn star? Or did he associate with known sex traffickers behind closed doors? Or, in a secret double-life, was he found liable for sexual assault himself, and are there tapes out there recording him bragging about grabbing women in the pussy? Did he have an affair? Was he forced into bankruptcy multiple times?

I mean, seriously, what “dirt” could have an impact on Donald Trump? I really can’t think of anything.

Tax returns?


Also, raping little kids or something. You know, all the Qanon projection sbit.

But I agree, Musk doesn't need leverage on Trump. Trump is already inhis debt over a quarter bullion dollars.. He prpbably does want leverage on everyone else. And I'm not convinced he hasn't already been working that angle over the years while he avoided any number of regulatory agencies despite clear non compliance.

[hepcat]

Trump is never "in debt". Ask the dozens of contractors he's stiffed over the decades he was in real estate

[LawBeefaroni]

Trump is never "in debt". Ask the dozens of contractors he's stiffed over the decades he was in real estate

The little guys he buried with lawyers until they went away. The big guys he made whole by conning new backers.

Musk is a different story and we're seeing Trump fold to him. Is it the $300B? Something else? Not sure.

[Smoove_B]

And I'm not convinced he hasn't already been working that angle over the years while he avoided any number of regulatory agencies despite clear non compliance.

The USDA was looking into Neurolink. They head was fired after Trump was sworn in and ultimlately forcibly removed after refusing to leave.

FAA had fined SpaceX and I think was looking at more action. The head of the FAA resigned shortly before Trump was sworn in, presumably knowing what was coming.

USAID provided Starlink terminals to Ukraine in 2022, but there were some questions about the terminal's security and USAID was conducting an investigation. Well, they were, until Musk targeted them specifically earlier this week.

I have no doubts Musk is absolutely orchestrating revenge.

[Exodor]

I can't remember in which thread we were going off about Teslas yesterday and I'm too lazy to check them all. At the rate things are moving the discussion is probably already a page or two back anyway, so I'll just pick up that sidetrack again here: Teslas turn toxic as sales crash in Europe

In the US, Tesla sales are down by double-digits in CA, by far the largest EV market.

I'm shocked the Tesla shareholders aren't raising a bigger stink about Musk being so preoccupied and taking so many Tesla execs over to Twitter and DOGE but I guess as long as the stock price remains high they'll tolerate his antics.

What I truly don't understand is why the stock price remains so high in the first place.

[Isgrimnur]

There’s finally some Tesla (TSLA) shareholder momentum to fire Elon Musk

Currently, the most popular post on the Tesla Investor Club on Reddit, one of the biggest Tesla shareholder communities, is about removing Musk as CEO of Tesla, and there have been a few of these types of posts getting traction over the last few weeks.

The post focused on Tesla’s lack of new models other than the Cybertruck in the last 5 years and the lack of growth in delivery volumes despite the rest of the EV market growing.

It also makes the argument that Musk is not following his own guiding principles when it comes to work dedication
...
While many Tesla shareholders agreed with the post, the main objection was that “the stock is up, why mess with something that works?”

This is indeed a problem for Tesla fans who want to see Musk go. With the board not doing anything, it would come down to shareholders voting the board out and forcing a confidence vote on Musk.

Shareholders are afraid that pushing Musk out would result in him selling his stock and triggering a big correction in Tesla’s stock.

[Zaxxon]

I'm shocked the Tesla shareholders aren't raising a bigger stink about Musk being so preoccupied and taking so many Tesla execs over to Twitter and DOGE but I guess as long as the stock price remains high they'll tolerate his antics.

As a general rule, suspend disbelief whenever viewing the actions of Tesla stockholders as it relates to the actions of Musk. Isg's article aside, I will be shocked--SHOCKED--if Musk is ever ousted (or even significantly limited) by the actions of Tesla stockholders.

I say this as one of those, who has voted against Musk multiple times and been wildly defeated every time.

[LawBeefaroni]

I'm shocked the Tesla shareholders aren't raising a bigger stink about Musk being so preoccupied and taking so many Tesla execs over to Twitter and DOGE but I guess as long as the stock price remains high they'll tolerate his antics.

As a general rule, suspend disbelief whenever viewing the actions of Tesla stockholders as it relates to the actions of Musk. Isg's article aside, I will be shocked--SHOCKED--if Musk is ever ousted (or even significantly limited) by the actions of Tesla stockholders.

I say this as one of those, who has voted against Musk multiple times and been wildly defeated every time.

It's because institutions own over half of the float. Musk and his brother own and additional what, 14% of all shares? Unless institutions turn on Elon, he will always have a majority of the votes.

[Max Peck]

Hmmm... I wonder if he'll feel conflicted?

The White House said Elon Musk will determine if there are conflicts of interest between his work reviewing federal spending and his overlapping empire of six companies

[Isgrimnur]

We have investigated ourselves and found that we did nothing wrong.

[LawBeefaroni]

Are we this stupid?

https://www.businessinsider.com/state-d ... las-2025-2

The State Department has scrubbed mention of armored Teslas from its 2025 procurement forecast.

The procurement document previously contained a line item that read: "Armored Tesla (Production Units)" — a reference to products from Elon Musk's electric vehicle company, Tesla. It was listed as a five-year contract and valued at $400 million, making it the biggest item on the list.
...
As of Wednesday night at 9:12 p.m. EST, the line item has been revised. It now reads "Armored Electric Vehicles." It's still listed as a five-year contract worth $400 million.

The document is now called "Department of State Procurement Forecast Year 2025."

By removing the company name from the procurement document, all conflict of interest is magically wiped away?

Over $10B in government contracts for Musk owned companies, dozens of pending cases and litigation with regulatory agencies, and now unloading failed Cybertrucks to the State Department.

[LordMortis]

Are we this stupid?

https://www.businessinsider.com/state-d ... las-2025-2

The State Department has scrubbed mention of armored Teslas from its 2025 procurement forecast.

The procurement document previously contained a line item that read: "Armored Tesla (Production Units)" — a reference to products from Elon Musk's electric vehicle company, Tesla. It was listed as a five-year contract and valued at $400 million, making it the biggest item on the list.
...
As of Wednesday night at 9:12 p.m. EST, the line item has been revised. It now reads "Armored Electric Vehicles." It's still listed as a five-year contract worth $400 million.

The document is now called "Department of State Procurement Forecast Year 2025."

By removing the company name from the procurement document, all conflict of interest is magically wiped away?

Over $10B in government contracts for Musk owned companies, dozens of pending cases and litigation with regulatory agencies, and now unloading failed Cybertrucks to the State Department.

^^^^
So much this. I would have jaw dropped this morning when that was the first thing in my news feed, only it's expected at this point. All about that efficiency for thee and salted pork from the barrels of corruption for me.

[Zaxxon]

Worth noting that this line-item was added under the Biden admin. That said, I don't think either admin needs $400M of armored Teslas.

[Zarathud]

Wasn’t Elon just talking about criminals with wasteful government contracts? I’m sure DOGE will name, shame and shut Tesla down.

[LawBeefaroni]

Worth noting that this line-item was added under the Biden admin. That said, I don't think either admin needs $400M of armored Teslas.

That's part of the point. It was an[other] existing conflict when he was appointed to DOGE. And the solution to that conflict is simply to remove the reference to "Tesla". It's still the same procurement order. But eh, the people are idiots, I guess.

[Blackhawk]

Armored Teslas? Do they not know how heavy armored domestic vehicles are, and how much power they suck down to transport all that mass? Do they plan on following it up with battery convoys?

[Punisher]

Armored Teslas? Do they not know how heavy armored domestic vehicles are, and how much power they suck down to transport all that mass? Do they plan on following it up with battery convoys?

No need. They are just used to go around the block.

[Smoove_B]

New from Elie Mystal - how Musk is trying to create Neo-apartheid in America:

The most explicitly racist thing Donald Trump has done in establishing his white supremacist regime these past three weeks has been his approach to South Africa. On February 7, Trump signed an executive order to cut off aid to the country (aid that mainly goes to South Africa’s HIV/AIDS prevention programs) because of its land reform laws. He went on to say that white South Africans should resettle in the United States where they will be accepted as “refugees” because they have been “persecuted” by the predominantly Black regime.

The juxtaposition of Trump gleefully deporting actual Black and brown refugees already in the United States with his order throwing open the borders to white South Africans is the reason I know that Trump is racist, not just as a matter of policy but as a matter of personality. It’s also the reason I know that Trump is not fully in charge; Trump is just a puppet dictator, while the real power behind the throne is the white South African Elon Musk. It’s Musk’s language and framing that Trump merely parroted in his orders and tweets about South Africa.

...

Not that I should need to drive this point home, but for the white media reading who refuse to call Trump out for his obvious racism: White South Africans are not oppressed. Whites make up only 7 percent of the population in South Africa, but they own around 75 percent of the land, a “hangover” from the centuries of white oppression and violence against the indigenous Black population there.

...

But they’re not in charge. Not anymore. And I believe that is what pisses off people like Shadow President Musk. A profile piece in The New York Times, published in 2022, suggested that Musk left South Africa to avoid military service for the apartheid regime. His parents, allegedly, were not “pro-apartheid,” despite making their money in Zambian emerald mines that exploited Black labor.

To the point:

Don’t get me wrong: They will still dabble in violence, because the white people in Trump’s government appear to revel in violence. But racial violence against Black Americans is more of a fun pastime for the MAGA regime than the political necessity it was for their white South African counterparts. Now that they have control of all the levers of government, they can subjugate, oppress, and exploit Black labor through pure economic means, just as long as white folks and especially white women stay in line and keep dutifully voting for white supremacy.

It’s that kind of economic apartheid that I fear Musk, and his brazenly illegal DOGE organization, is trying to bring about here. Some will no doubt think my fear is overblown, and I hope it is, but let me put it this way: I can no longer tell you what the difference would be between a “pro-apartheid” presidential administration and the current administration, and I doubt you can either. Trump and Musk are calling the white South African diaspora “home”… to America; what else do they have to do to make other people see what they’re up to, dig up Nelson Mandela and put his body back in jail?

...

First and most important, apartheid is a business plan. It’s a system designed to exploit cheap Black labor, without ever letting Black people reap the financial and social gains of hard work.

....

Still, while the federal government is the largest single employer, private industries employ significantly more people than the government. Apartheid-curious companies can be freed to do all the things Musk allegedly does at Tesla if the government agencies in charge of stopping them, like the EEOC, are hollowed out. Again, we see Musk and Trump doing that already. We see it with companies like Meta and Target rolling back “DEI policies,” which is really just a code for no longer hiring Black people. Right now, white employers are functionally free to ignore the Civil Rights Act and the 14th Amendment, and they are reacting with apartheid-esque glee.

In closing:

History doesn’t always repeat itself, but it does often rhyme. What I see now is a white South African manchild who is trying to reinstall the white world order of his homeland but reworked for our digital, late-stage-capitalist times. An American neo-apartheid system will share many of the economic goals of South Africa’s old system, but it won’t be the same. It’ll be different and unique in its own horribly oppressive, illegal, and immoral way.

Still, something apartheid-like can happen here, is already happening here, and it will continue to happen here, if this is what white folks want. I can’t stop white people from getting what they want; I can only remind them what they’re asking for. And I can remind Black folks that, no matter how much crypto Musk offers you to sing and dance for his amusement, this guy will have us working in the mines if he continues to be given unchecked power.

There's a lot more and I can't claim to know much at all about the South African apartheid, but it Mystal sure seems to be on to something.

[Kraken]

Today’s Borowitz Report is good for a chuckle:

MOSCOW (The Borowitz Report)—Vladimir Putin has entered into negotiations with Elon Musk over the ownership of Donald J. Trump, the Kremlin confirmed on Tuesday.

Those negotiations, however, are proving contentious, as the Russian president is arguing that, having fully owned Trump between 2017 and 2021, he is entitled to a majority stake now.

For his part, Musk claims that he purchased Trump outright by spending nearly $300 million on his 2024 campaign.
In one heated exchange, Musk reportedly told the Russian leader, “You’re being greedy, Vlad—you already own Tulsi.”

[waitingtoconnect]

Leon is no Bond villain. He's more of a Dr. Claw -- but, sadly, we have no Inspector Gadget to foil his schemes.

Bezos can stop him

[Smoove_B]

Totally normal:

The US Marshals Service has deputized members of Elon Musk’s private security detail, giving them certain rights and protections of federal law enforcement agents, three law enforcement officials familiar with the matter told CNN.

It was not immediately clear how many members of Musk’s security team were made special deputies.

...

Now that members have been deputized, they have more rights and could be authorized to carry weapons on federal grounds. It also means that if something went awry with the detail, the Marshals Service could be held legally liable, one law enforcement source said.

CNN has reached out to the Justice Department and the US Marshals Service for comment.

Note:

The Marshals Service has deputized security details before, including that of Dr. Anthony Fauci. The Marshals deputized officers from the office of the inspector general at the Department of Health and Human Services to serve as Fauci’s security because of an increase in threats to his personal safety.

But law enforcement sources told CNN that deputizing private security is unusual, particularly because those individuals are not current members of law enforcement. One source described the move as “rare.”

[Anonymous Bosch]

Video/Pics: Suspect shoots up Tesla dealership in anti-Elon Musk protest

Law enforcement officials are searching for a suspect after a Tesla dealership was damaged by gunshots in Salem, Oregon, on Wednesday.



Law enforcement officials are searching for a suspect after a Tesla dealership was damaged by gunshots in Salem, Oregon, on Wednesday morning. The incident comes as Democrats have led major protests against Tesla CEO Elon Musk due to his leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency under President Donald Trump’s administration.

According to KGW8, police officials responded to the incident at the Tesla dealership on Mission Street Northwest in Salem at roughly 5 a.m. on Wednesday. Angela Hedrick, a Salem Police Department spokesperson, confirmed to the Salem Statesman Journal that police officers discovered that the Tesla dealership’s windows appeared to have been damaged by gunshots.

Hedrick told the Salem Statesman Journal that no arrests have been made in connection with Wednesday’s incident and that the incident is currently under investigation. Hedrick also told the outlet that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is also assisting with the investigation.

According to the Salem Statesman Journal, the gunshots caused significant damage to the front doors of the dealership. Law enforcement officials, who remained at the scene of the crime until roughly 12:30 p.m., also found that three other windows had sustained damage in the incident.

KGW8 reported that the damage discovered at the Salem Tesla dealership was the second incident at the dealership in the last month. According to the outlet, law enforcement officials and firefighters responded to a vehicle fire and vandalism to a window panel at the dealership on January 20. The first incident remains under investigation by the Salem Police Felony Crimes Unit and the FBI.

Journalist Nick Sortor shared pictures on X, formerly Twitter, of the damage caused by the two recent incidents at the Tesla dealership in Salem. Sortor also shared a video of a “Kill Elon” sticker that protesters recently put on the window of a Tesla showroom in New York.

[GreenGoo]

Unlike unpopular dem policies, like "wokeness" and "feeding children", unpopular rep policies like "bankrupting family farms" and "gutting government services" are going to actually hurt and/or kill people. No one should be surprised if violence occurs in protest, and no one should be both sidesing it.

[LawBeefaroni]

It will just lead to more "justification" of arming DOGE and granting extra-judicial powers to Trump/Musk.

There will be a special police force headed up by Musk.

[GreenGoo]

It will just lead to more "justification" of arming DOGE and granting extra-judicial powers to Trump/Musk.

There will be a special police force headed up by Musk.

Sure. You know what else will cause granting of extra-judicial powers? Anything.

[Smoove_B]

Totally normal:

President Donald Trump is holding the first Cabinet meeting of his second term on Wednesday.

Joining the group is Elon Musk, who the White House says is "overseeing" the Department of Government Efficiency and whose high status inside the administration has caused some confusion and court challenges.

"ALL CABINET MEMBERS ARE EXTREMELY HAPPY WITH ELON. The Media will see that at the Cabinet Meeting this morning!!!" Trump wrote on his social media platform on Wednesday morning.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed Musk would be present during Tuesday's briefing.

[Zaxxon]

If we could just stick him in the cabinet, and far, far away from Tesla, please.

[Zarathud]

Trump calls for a vote of confidence in the Shadow President, who will be the scapegoat when DOGE fails. Or succeeds.

[gbasden]

If we could just stick him in the cabinet, and far, far away from Tesla, please.

I think it's going to be a long time before his stink comes off of Tesla.

[Holman]

Xitter has been experiencing serious outages today. I'm sure it has nothing to do with Musk having fired most of the team.

Now he's claiming that they're under cyberattack, and that the attack is "too big" to be anything but organized by a state actor. He has apparently blamed Ukraine (as if they would jeopardize their Starlink access just to inconvenience X users).

[LordMortis]

To your post.

Elon Musk claims X being targeted in ‘massive cyberattack’ as service goes down

[Zarathud]

Maybe when you stop watching Russia, they start to have fun.

Or the furries who control the interwebs have decided to flex their muscles.

[Kraken]

Maybe when you stop watching Russia, they start to have fun.

That doesn't follow; Xitter is a Russian propaganda asset.

Or the furries who control the interwebs have decided to flex their muscles.

That follows. Assuming it really is an attack, and not just ordinary incompetence.

[Unagi]

He has apparently blamed Ukraine (as if they would jeopardize their Starlink access just to inconvenience X users).

It's just the pretext so that he can shut down their access with cause.

"as if I would give them access to Starlink after they attack X" - before the end of the week.

[Holman]

Trump holds a Tesla car showcase on the White House grounds.

The grift is so completely out in the open.

[Smoove_B]

Even better:



This is absolutely insane

[Max Peck]

Oh, please... Presidents endorse products all the time. It's perfectly normal.