President Donald Trump turned the South Lawn of the White House into a temporary Tesla showroom Tuesday in a conspicuous favor to his adviser Elon Musk, the car company’s billionaire CEO.
Tesla delivered five of its vehicles to the White House and parked them on a driveway for Trump to personally inspect, hours after he said on Truth Social that he planned to buy a Tesla to demonstrate his support for Musk and for the slumping company.
With Musk beside him, Trump declared the vehicles “beautiful” and in particular praised the company’s unusually designed Cybertruck.
“As soon as I saw it, I said, ‘That is the coolest design,’” Trump said.
Though Trump frequently attacked electric vehicles during last year’s campaign, he told reporters that he had heard good things about Teslas from his friends. He sat in the driver’s seat of a sedan, with Musk seated beside him, and said he planned to buy one.
“The one I like is that one, and I want the same color,” he said, pointing to a red Model S. The vehicle is listed on the Tesla website for $73,490, or $88,490 for the all-wheel-drive Model S Plaid.
He did not take a test drive but said he might “another time.”
Because of ethical restraints, it is extremely rare for a senior government official, let alone a sitting president, to endorse a consumer product so explicitly. In 2017, when then-Trump counselor Kellyanne Conway told Americans to buy from Ivanka Trump’s clothing line, she received a warning from a government ethics office and promised never to do it again.
By reviewing the Teslas in public before cameras, Trump ensured that his purchase would get wide attention. Dan Scavino, a White House deputy chief of staff, livestreamed the event on X, the social media app owned by Musk.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the application of ethics rules.
Trump said he would pay for the vehicle by check.
The event drew some criticism, most notably from Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn.
“Just because the corruption plays out in public doesn’t mean it’s not corruption,” Murphy said on X, alongside a video of Trump getting into a Tesla.
In his first weeks in office, Trump has increasingly moved away from the populist policies and messaging of both his first term and his campaigns, instead embracing the interests and agendas of his billionaire backers. Musk, in particular, has led the administration’s push to cut thousands of largely middle-class federal jobs, and people are seeing their retirement savings tank as the stock market plummets amid uncertainty over Trump’s policies. Yet it was Musk whom Trump focused on boosting Tuesday.
Tesla, meanwhile, has faced an extended global backlash to Musk’s increasing role in politics, most notably for his role in slashing government jobs and his recent promotion of far-right parties, including Germany’s AfD. Tesla’s shares have declined every week since Musk went to Washington, and they fell 15% on Monday before they rebounded Tuesday. Tesla facilities have faced a wave of both peaceful demonstrations and vandalism, including fires at charging stations.
Asked whether his purchase might help Tesla’s stock, Trump said, “I hope it does.”
Trump held a piece of paper with notes about Tesla features, according to photos of the notes published by Getty Images. The notes appeared to be something of a sales pitch, including details that Teslas could be purchased for $299 a month and that all vehicles “have self-driving” — a reference to the company’s suite of driver-assistance features, which cost extra and still require human supervision.
Trump condemned the vandalism and heaped praise on the company.
“They’re harming a great American company,” he said. Referring to Musk, he said: “He’s built this great company, and he shouldn’t be penalized because he’s a patriot.”
Tuesday’s showcase was a sharp contrast with the Biden administration, which in 2021 did not invite Tesla to an event about electric vehicles — a decision that Musk perceived as a snub that helped to turn him away from the Democratic Party. Musk was still steaming about it more than two years later, posting on social media on Christmas Eve 2023 about having gotten a “cold shoulder” from the White House. Musk and President Joe Biden were on opposite sides of a fight about unionizing Tesla.
Musk, standing next to Trump, said Tesla planned to double vehicle output in the United States.
Musk is at the center of growing tension within the government about his role as a White House adviser and head of Trump's Department of Government Efficiency. The Trump administration is battling lawsuits that say Musk has exceeded his authority under the law and the Constitution, and members of Trump's Cabinet have privately expressed frustrations about Musk's involvement in their agencies.
Musk was a major financial supporter of Trump's campaign last year, spending more than a quarter of a billion dollars and making personal appearances on his behalf in the swing state Pennsylvania. Musk also turned X into a pro-Trump media platform.
In a post on Truth Social on Tuesday shortly after midnight, Trump was unabashed in his reason for buying a Tesla.
“I’m going to buy a brand new Tesla tomorrow morning as a show of confidence and support for Elon Musk, a truly great American,” he wrote.
It is not clear when, if ever, Trump would have the chance to drive a car of any kind unless he does so within the White House complex or a similarly secure area. Presidents are driven around in custom limousines with special security features.
“I haven’t bought a new car in a long time,” Trump said.
