Daily Scoop🍨: Tesla (TSLA) Reeks Of Bullying With DOGE Controversies

Hundreds of demonstrators gathered nationwide outside Tesla showrooms Saturday amid heightened criticism against CEO Elon Musk’s federal cost-cutting role in the so-called Department of Government Efficiency and after Attorney General Pam Bondi vowed to crack down on vandalism against Tesla.

The demonstrations are part of the “Tesla Takedown” movement, a boycott that began on February 15 against Musk’s electric vehicle company. The campaign was started by Hollywood actor and filmmaker Alex Winter, and Joan Donovan, an assistant professor of Journalism and Emerging Media Studies at Boston University. DOGE has slashed thousands of government jobs, and this week it proposed a dramatic downsizing of the IRS that would result in a nearly 20% reduction of its workforce by May 15.

More than 80 demonstrations are slated for Saturday and more than 70 are planned through the end of April, according to the Tesla Takedown website. The movement wants people to “sell your Teslas, dump your stock, join the picket lines.”

In the Boston suburb of Dedham, about 100 demonstrators gathered outside a Tesla showroom. The Philadelphia suburb of West Chester had a similar turnout. Baltimore saw one of the biggest turnouts with at least 300 demonstrators

In Washington, DC, more than 50 demonstrators had gathered by noon outside a Tesla showroom, holding signs and dancing to songs by Beyoncé and Daft Punk as passing drivers honked their horns in support. The number of demonstrators on the gloomy and chilly day was a sharp uptick from the turnout about two weeks ago at the same Georgetown location.

Sara Steffens, a former journalist and policy advocate, said she paired up with Melissa Knutson, who is self-employed, to turn the demonstration into a dance party. Knutson said she wanted to replicate the musical atmosphere she saw at a demonstration in Maryland.

“We need to have joy because this is a long haul, and we need to grow our movement against this authoritarianism,” Knutson told CNN.

Trump administration responds after vandalism against Tesla

Police departments across the United States are investigating a wave of attacks on Tesla showrooms, charging stations and vehicles.

On March 3, seven charging stations in a mall outside of Boston were set on fire. Five days later in New York City, six protesters were arrested for occupying a showroom. In Colorado, a woman was accused of throwing Molotov cocktails and vandalizing vehicles and a showroom.

Bondi said Friday she had opened an investigation into vandalism against Tesla vehicles and showrooms.

“If you’re going to touch a Tesla, go to a dealership, do anything, you better watch out because we’re coming after you. And if you’re funding this, we’re coming after you. We’re going to find out who you are,” Bondi said on Fox Business.

And on Tuesday, President Donald Trump and Musk made an appearance on the South Lawn of the White House, where five Tesla vehicles were showcased. Trump called the vehicles “beautiful” and said he hoped the event would boost Tesla sales.