Unplugged: The Backlash Against Trump–Musk

Unplugged: The Backlash Against Trump–Musk

Tesla’s stock plummeted more than 30 percent in the first quarter of 2025, losing its post-election gains, as the electric vehicle pioneer grapples with an unexpected challenge: a consumer revolt against CEO Elon Musk's leadership of the so-called Department of Government Efficiency and his political alliances.

Once celebrated across the political spectrum, Tesla has transformed from an environmental icon into a political flashpoint.

Tesla dealerships have become symbols, explains Lara Starr, who organized a 200-person demonstration in Marin County, California. "You can't disentangle Tesla from Musk, and you can't disentangle Musk from Trump. And the one thing I can say about Musk positively is he has handed us a place in almost every community around the country that is symbolic of everything wrong that is going on in Washington."

The impact of this grassroots rebellion is beginning to show in Tesla's financial reports. Global sales have hit historic lows for the company, with particularly sharp declines in traditionally strong markets.

Despite Tesla's business challenges, the billionaire poured considerable resources on reshaping America's political landscape. His political spending — including with his super PAC spending $25 million in a single Wisconsin Supreme Court race — has yielded disappointing returns. His preferred candidate was defeated.

In this week’s episode of The Intercept Briefing, reporters Matt Sledge and Sunjeev Bery examine this grassroots rebellion and what it reveals about Musk's power and the future of political activism.

"There's been a lot of talk about how the Democrats are in disarray and not sure how to recover from the election last year. But the Wisconsin election — and the way that Elon Musk got involved and personalized it and made it about him himself — gave Democrats an easy yes-no vote on Elon Musk, and I think that was really significant here," says Sledge.

He points out how that election is also a rebuke of the Trump–Musk alliance: " It is fascinating that it is happening through this electoral mechanism, and that people are being allowed to give a referendum on this relationship, and that the democratic process is potentially having a direct input on this relationship."

Intercept contributor Sunjeev Bery says the Tesla protests are much bigger than just Tesla or Musk. "The Tesla takedown movement has become this astonishing wave of opposition to Trump, the fascist directions of the Trump regime, everything Elon Musk is pushing with DOGE. It's a place where lots of people who are angry about all of the different things that the Trump regime is up to — all of the fires they're setting — can come together and focus on Elon Musk, Tesla, and the physical place of his dealerships."


Listen to the full conversation of The Intercept Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Avsnitt(370)

Radical White Terrorism

Radical White Terrorism

Guardian columnist Nesrine Malik talks about the “ghoulish routine” in the media and among politicians that increasingly emerges in the aftermath of massacres of Muslims by white supremacists. The Intercept’s Murtaza Hussain explains why, as a non-white Western Muslim, he felt compelled to analyze the “manifesto” of the shooter. University of Chicago historian Kathleen Belew, author of “Bring the War Home: The White Power Movement and Paramilitary America,” discusses the history of white power movements and why she draws a distinction between white power and white supremacy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

20 Mars 201957min

The American Machine: Police Torture to Drone Assassinations

The American Machine: Police Torture to Drone Assassinations

Famed civil rights lawyer Flint Taylor discusses his 13 year struggle for justice for Fred Hampton, his work in exposing the torture program in Chicago that was unleashed on black men, and his career fighting against violent corrupt cops, the city of Chicago, and J. Edgar Hoover’s FBI. Taylor’s new memoir is called "The Torture Machine: Racism and Police Violence in Chicago." Hina Shamsi of the American Civil Liberties Union talks about the expansion of drone strikes under Trump, how Obama paved the way for his successor, and what we might expect from Attorney General William Barr. Meghan McCain is not Jewish, but she is accusing a Jewish comic artist of creating “one of the most anti-semitic things” she has ever seen: a cartoon about her hypocrisy in attacking Ilhan Omar and appropriating Jewish suffering. Artist Eli Valley talks about why he drew it and why he believes McCain’s attacks on his cartoon proves the very point he was making. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

13 Mars 20191h 16min

American Misdirection

American Misdirection

Journalist and Russiagate critic Aaron Maté presents his dissenting analysis, what he believes is behind the investigation, and how the scandal has distracted from other urgent issues. We hear a speech from professor Shoshana Zuboff, author of “The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power.”As the Trump administration intensifies its air war in Somalia, journalist Harun Maruf, author of “Inside Al-Shabaab: The Secret History of Al-Qaeda’s Most Powerful Ally," discusses the war in Somalia and the seldom mentioned history of how the George W. Bush administration helped overthrow the only force that had brought peace to Somalia since the early 1990s. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

6 Mars 20191h 17min

The Secrets of American Power

The Secrets of American Power

California Rep. Ro Khanna tells us he is ready to invoke the War Powers Act in an effort to stop military action in Venezuela. New York Times reporter Charlie Savage discusses the rise of the unitary executive theory and how Attorney General William Barr could impact the Trump scandals and U.S. national security policy.Carol Rosenberg, the only journalist covering the Guantanamo prison and trials full-time, joins us for a wide-ranging conversation. She discusses 17 years of reporting, controversies around prosecuting detainees, and the evidence that Haspel's covert career included a stint at GTMO.  Jordan Carver, the author of “Spaces of Disappearance: the Architecture of Extraordinary Rendition,” takes us on an audio journey mapping the covert CIA program. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

27 Feb 20191h 24min

Regime Change We Can Believe In

Regime Change We Can Believe In

Venezuela scholar George Ciccariello-Maher and journalist Kim Ives discuss recent developments and examine the massive protests rocking Haiti’s U.S.-backed president. The Intercept’s Jon Schwarz details the bloody and murderous career of Elliott Abrams, the man now in charge of U.S.-Venezuela operations. And journalist Sharif Abdel Kouddous explains the failed revolution in Egypt and outlines U.S.-backed dictator General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s plot to make himself president for life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

20 Feb 20191h 29min

Neoliberalism or Death: The U.S. Economic War Against Venezuela

Neoliberalism or Death: The U.S. Economic War Against Venezuela

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi officially endorses the attempted coup in Venezuela, joining forces with Donald Trump and his posse of neoconservatives. Venezuela’s Vice Foreign Minister Carlos Ron responds to the threats of military action, the reports about covert U.S. activity in the country, and discusses the impact of the sanctions on Venezuela. Former United Nations rapporteur Alfred de Zayas is accusing the U.S. of attempting to “asphyxiate” Venezuela with economic warfare and says the U.S. should be investigated by the International Criminal Court. Zayas wrote a UN report on Venezuela in late 2018 that was scathing in its assessment of U.S. policy towards Venezuela under both Obama and Trump. He talks about what he found during his investigation. And we go inside the mind of journalist Sam Husseini who tried to ask convicted criminal Elliott Abrams about his past and the present U.S. lies about Venezuela. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

13 Feb 20191h 13min

Trump Headlines a Benefit Concert for Imperialism

Trump Headlines a Benefit Concert for Imperialism

Donald Trump received big bipartisan applause at his State of the Union.Vijay Prashad discusses the state of imperialism in the world, the battle for Venezuela, India’s upcoming election, and the history of U.S. dirty operations across the globe. As right-wing media and politicians have gone berserk over the FBI raid on the home of Trump crony, Roger Stone, whistleblower Reality Winner remains behind bars. The Intercept’s Peter Maass discusses the hypocrisy surrounding the two cases and we hear excerpts from the recent play, “Is This A Room: Reality Winner Verbatim Transcription,” created by Tina Satter. The play is based entirely on the verbatim transcript of the FBI interrogation of Winner the day she was arrested. Plus, a sneak peak at the new film Donald Trump’s Day Off. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

6 Feb 20191h 16min

Donald Trump and the Yankee Plot to Overthrow the Venezuelan Government

Donald Trump and the Yankee Plot to Overthrow the Venezuelan Government

Investigative journalist Allan Nairn talks about the history of U.S. crimes in Central America, the time he told Abrams, on national television, he should stand trial for war crimes and the threat of U.S. military action in Venezuela. Former adviser to Hugo Chavez, Eva Golinger, and journalist and educator Roberto Lovato discuss how Venezuela was thrust into economic crisis, who is responsible, and what Washington really wants. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

30 Jan 20191h 5min

Populärt inom Politik & nyheter

aftonbladet-krim
motiv
fordomspodden
p3-krim
rss-krimstad
blenda-2
rss-viva-fotboll
flashback-forever
aftonbladet-daily
svenska-fall
rss-sanning-konsekvens
rss-vad-fan-hande
rss-krimreportrarna
dagens-eko
rss-frandfors-horna
olyckan-inifran
rss-svalan-krim
krimmagasinet
rss-klubbland-en-podd-mest-om-frolunda
rss-flodet