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.
President Donald Trump, alongside Tesla CEO Elon Musk, speaks next to a Tesla vehicle at the South Portico of the White House on Tuesday.Mandel Ngan / AFP – Getty Images
“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.
