Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

West Bank Town Becomes ‘Big Prison’ as Israel Fences It In

4 days ago

Trump Says He’s Willing to Let Migrant Farm Laborers Stay in US

4 days ago

US Electric Vehicle Tax Breaks Will Expire on Sept. 30

4 days ago

Eyeing Arctic Dominance, Trump Bill Earmarks $8.6 Billion for US Coast Guard Icebreakers

4 days ago

Trump’s Sweeping Tax-Cut and Spending Bill Wins Congressional Approval

4 days ago

Americans Celebrate Their Independence With Record-Breaking Travel Numbers

5 days ago

US Supreme Court to Decide Legality of Transgender School Sports Bans

5 days ago

Nvidia Set to Become the World’s Most Valuable Company in History

5 days ago

Poll: 41% in US ‘Extremely Proud’ to Be American, Near Historic Low

5 days ago
Protesters Rebelling Against Elon Musk's Purge of US Government Swarm Tesla Showrooms
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 3 months ago on
March 29, 2025

Nationwide protests erupt as demonstrators target Tesla showrooms, opposing Elon Musk's controversial role in the U.S. government. (AP/Thomas Krych)

Share

SAN FRANCISCO — Crowds protesting billionaire Elon Musk’s purge of the U.S. government under President Donald Trump began amassing outside Tesla dealerships throughout the U.S. and in some cities in Europe on Saturday in the latest attempt to dent the fortune of the world’s richest man.

The protesters are trying to escalate a movement targeting Tesla dealerships and vehicles in opposition to Musk’s role as the head of the newly created Department of of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, where he has gained access to sensitive data and shuttered entire agencies as he attempts to slash government spending. The biggest portion of Musk’s estimated $340 billion fortune consists of his stock in the electric vehicle company, which continues to run while also working alongside Trump.

After earlier demonstrations that were somewhat sporadic, Saturday marked the first attempt to surround all 277 of the automaker’s showrooms and service centers in the U.S. in hopes of deepening a recent decline in the company’s sales.

Nationwide Protests Gain Momentum

By early afternoon crowds ranging from a few dozen to hundreds of protesters had flocked to Tesla locations in New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, Maryland, Minnesota and the automaker’s home state of Texas. Pictures posted on social media showed protesters brandishing signs such as “Honk if you hate Elon” and “Fight the billionaire broligarchy.”

As the day progressed, the protests cascaded around the country outside Tesla locations in major cities such as Washington, Chicago, Indianapolis, Cincinnati and Seattle, as well as towns in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Colorado. Smaller groups of counterprotesters also showed up at some sites.

“Hey, hey, ho, ho, Elon Musk has got to go!” several dozen people chanted outside a showroom in Dublin, California, about 35 miles (60 miles) east of San Francisco, while a smaller cluster of Trump supporters waved American flags across the street.

A much larger crowd circled another showroom in nearby Berkeley, chanting slogans to the beat of drums.

“We’re living in a fascist state,” said Dennis Fagaly, a retired high school teacher from neighboring Oakland, “and we need to stop this or we’ll lose our whole country and everything that is good about the United States.”

Global Reach of Anti-Musk Sentiment

The Tesla Takedown movement also hoped to rally protesters at more than 230 locations in other parts of the world. Although the turnouts in Europe were not as large, the anti-Musk sentiment was similar.

About two dozen people held signs lambasting the billionaire outside a dealership in London as passing cars and trucks tooted horns in support.

One sign displayed depicted Musk next to an image of Adolf Hitler making the Nazi salute — a gesture that Musk has been accused of reprising shortly after Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration. A person in a Tyrannosaurus rex costume held another sign with a picture of Musk’s straight-arm gesture that said, “You thought the Nazis were extinct. Don’t buy a Swasticar.”

“We just want to get loud, make noise, make people aware of the problems that we’re facing,” said Cam Whitten, an American who showed up at the London protest.

Tesla Takedown was organized by a group of supporters that included disillusioned owners of the automaker’s vehicles, celebrities such as actor John Cusack, and at least one Democratic Party lawmaker, Rep. Jasmine Crockett from Dallas.

“I’m going to keep screaming in the halls of Congress. I just need you all to make sure you all keep screaming in the streets,” Crockett said during an organizing call this month.

Another Democratic lawmaker, Rep. Pramila Jaypal, showed up at a protest in Seattle, which she represents in Congress.

Escalating Tensions and Vandalism Concerns

Some people have gone beyond protest, setting Tesla vehicles on fire or committing other acts of vandalism that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi has decried as domestic terrorism. In a March 20 copmany meeting, Musk indicated that he was dumbfounded by the attacks and said the vandals should “stop acting psycho.”

Crockett and other Tesla Takedown supporters have been stressing the importance of Saturday’s protests remaining peaceful.

But police were investigating a fire that destroyed seven Teslas in northwestern Germany in the early morning. It was not immediately clear if the blaze, which was extinguished by firefighters, was related to the protests.

A growing number of consumers who bought Tesla vehicles before Musk took over DOGE have been looking to sell or trade them in, while others have slapped on bumper stickers seeking to distance themselves from him.

But Musk did not appear concerned about an extended slump in new sales in the March meeting, during which he reassured the workers that the company’s Model Y would remain “the best-selling car on Earth again this year.” He also predicted that Tesla will have sold more than 10 million cars worldwide by next year, up from about 7 million currently.

“There are times when there are rocky moments, where there is stormy weather, but what I am here to tell you is that the future is incredibly bright and exciting,” Musk said.

After Trump was elected last November, investors initially saw Musk’s alliance with the president as a positive development for Tesla and its long-running efforts to launch a network of self-driving cars.

That optimism helped lift Tesla’s stock by 70% between the election and Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, creating an additional $560 billion in shareholder wealth. But virtually all those gains have evaporated amid investor worries about the backlash, lagging sales in the U.S., Europe and China, and Musk spending time overseeing DOGE.

“This continues to be a moment of truth for Musk to navigate this brand tornado crisis moment and get onto the other side of this dark chapter for Tesla,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in a recent research note.

Associated Press writers Terry Chea in Berkeley, California, Mustakim Hasnath in London and Stefanie Dazio in Germany contributed.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

DON'T MISS

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

DON'T MISS

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

DON'T MISS

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

DON'T MISS

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

DON'T MISS

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

DON'T MISS

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

DON'T MISS

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

DON'T MISS

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

DON'T MISS

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

UP NEXT

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

UP NEXT

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

UP NEXT

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

UP NEXT

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

UP NEXT

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

UP NEXT

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

UP NEXT

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

UP NEXT

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

UP NEXT

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

UP NEXT

July 4 Weekend Was No Picnic for Fresno-Area Firefighters. How Bad Did It Get?

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

7 hours ago

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

8 hours ago

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

8 hours ago

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

8 hours ago

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

8 hours ago

Madera County Multi-Agency Effort Leads to Arrest of Felony Suspect in Atwater

8 hours ago

Fresno Police Arrest DUI Driver During Crackdown on Illegal Street Racing and Sideshows

8 hours ago

July 4 Weekend Was No Picnic for Fresno-Area Firefighters. How Bad Did It Get?

10 hours ago

Tulare County Seizes 300 Pounds of Illegal Fireworks Over Fourth of July

10 hours ago

US Proposes Rules That Could Boost Oil, Gas Output in US West

10 hours ago

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

WASHINGTON – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday told President Donald Trump he had nominated him for the Nobel Peace ...

6 hours ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu looks on during a bilateral dinner with U.S. President Donald Trump (not pictured), at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
6 hours ago

Netanyahu Nominates Trump for Nobel Peace Prize

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
6 hours ago

Netanyahu Meets Trump at White House as Israel, Hamas Discuss Ceasefire

A wind farm is shown in Movave, California, U.S., November 8, 2019. (Reuter File)
7 hours ago

Trump Executive Order Seeks End to Wind and Solar Energy Subsidies

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon testifies before a Senate Appropriations hearing on U.S. President Donald Trump's budget request for the Department of Education, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., U.S., June 3, 2025. (Reuters File)
7 hours ago

US Threatens California With Legal Action Over Transgender Sports Law

United States Department of Veterans Affairs logo and U.S. flag are seen in this illustration taken April 23, 2025. (Reuters File)
8 hours ago

US Veterans Affairs Will Cut Nearly 30,000 Jobs, Far Fewer Than Planned

A group of search and rescue workers paddle a boat in the Guadalupe River in the aftermath of deadly flooding in Kerr County, Texas, U.S., July 7, 2025. (Reuters/Sergio Flores)
8 hours ago

Houston Astros Donate $1M to Help Recovery From Texas Floods

8 hours ago

Tucker Carlson Aired Interview With President of Iran

Attendees visit the 23andMe booth at the RootsTech annual genealogical event in Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S., February 28, 2019. (Reuters File)
8 hours ago

California Fails to Stop 23andMe Founder From Re-Acquiring Company

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend