[DFHippie]

Here's hoping the business world learns from this experience: trolls make terrible CEOs. It's one thing to be a narcissist or a sociopath. It's another to set out to sell a product while bending all your effort to taunting and dominating the customers who trusted you. People remember being betrayed.

It turns out no one is an NPC.

[TheAlchemist]

I don't think it's that simple.

Tesla sales were already slowing way before Musk turned full MAGA and he knew that. Competition showed up, states started cutting EV subisdes, especially in Europe etc. Tesla was never going to achieve the 50% / year growth that hey announced, and hit 20M car sales by 2030.

I actually think that may be one reason he did turn to Trump. It's a last ditch attempt at trying to save his empire.

People will point out that he is the richest person on earth etc etc. This is all based on valuation levels making pets.com like something Buffett could buy. The only liquid asset he has is Tesla. It's the only one on which he cashed in tens of billions of $, and it's the one he used as collateral to fund his other ventures. If it goes back down to earth, he's done.

[DFHippie]

Perhaps. I don't see how he thought this was going to save his empire, though. Trump's crowd hates electric cars. Environmental concerns are to them what pork is to pious Jews and Muslims, beef to Hindus. Rolling coal is their sacrament. The refrain at Trump's rallies was "drill, baby, drill". And this has been the case -- not the refrain, but the attitude -- since the 60s. So how was Trump ever going to save "Tesler"? It makes as much sense as sacrificing your children to Moloch to save your family line: the only thing that is sure in that bargain is the death of your children.

[dzhiurgis]

Technically Tesla's mission newer was about "the environment" but rather "Accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy". Slight difference.

Plus they mostly achieved that (accelerated the world) and pivoting to AI now.

[jqpabc123]

Does Musk's thinking make as much sense as people intentionally voting for massive new taxes?

Peter Navarro said that he expects Trump’s tariffs to bring in $6 trillion in revenue over the next decade.

The MAGA economic miracle is actually the largest tax hike in US history --- to be paid entirely by US voters/consumers.

Nothing about MAGA (or Musk) economics makes any sense. In the words of Warren Buffet, the tooth fairy isn't going to pay these tariffs.

[ttyprintk]

A -2% effect on GDP would make that a wash. So, for Trump to satisfy Navarro, he needs to beat 2% GDP growth, which he routinely could in his first term. Biden was often double Trump’s GDP growth rate.

[jqpabc123]

he needs to beat 2% GDP growth

Hard to grow GDP while also working to isolate the US economy from world markets.

This won't end well for most people --- but especially not for MAGA voters.