Billionaire businessman Elon Musk arrives for a town hall wearing a cheesehead hat at the KI Convention Center on March 30 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Photo: Scott Olson/Getty Images
Disgruntled Americans are using their wallets, votes and voices to send Elon Musk a message in a string of business and political losses for the world’s richest man.
Why it matters: Musk’s time as the chainsaw-wielding head of DOGE has made him the face of several controversial Trump administration policies, turning him into a target for protests and public backlash.
Behind the scenes: President Trump suggested to reporters on Monday that Musk’s role in the federal government could end imminently.
- His status as a “special government employee” can only last 130 days.
- Musk may be more of a political liability these days with some members of the Trump administration frustrated with his unpredictability. He’d likely maintain an informal advisory role, per Politico.
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Tesla sales plummet amid protests
Tesla vehicle deliveries plunged 13% in the first quarter compared with a year earlier. Deliveries are considered a close proxy for sales.
- This marks a significant indicator that the brand’s reputation is suffering from Musk’s political involvement and his association with DOGE.
Zoom out: Tesla Takedown protests at dealerships nationwide have been a mass-grassroots backlash to Musk’s role in the Trump administration.
- The movement organized a March 29 “global day of action” with demonstrations outside Tesla showrooms across the world.
Wisconsin election
The Musk poured millions into the Wisconsin Supreme Court election only to see the conservative-backed Brad Schimel soundly defeated by Susan Crawford on Tuesday.
- It was the most expensive judicial race in U.S. history, which led to high turnout.
- The court, which has cases pending on abortion rights, redistricting and election laws, will maintain a liberal majority until at least 2028.
Between the lines: The election served as an early referendum on Trump and Republicans.
- Musk, who campaigned in Wisconsin, had cast the race in apocalyptic terms, saying the outcome would decide “the future of the world” — a prediction he now downplays after his resounding loss.
Dipping favorability
Musk’s favorability ratings dropped from neutral to 10 points underwater with respondents by the end of Trump’s second month in office, according to data from the Center for American Political Studies at Harvard that the Harris Poll and HarrisX released on Monday.
- According to the polling, Musk is less popular with the public than Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (+7) and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth (-5), who was recently caught up the administration’s Signal scandal.
Zoom in: Musk’s cratering public perception is hitting his highest profile company, with two-thirds (67%) of Americans telling a recent Yahoo News/YouGov poll they wouldn’t consider buying or leasing a Tesla.
- 56% of those said Musk was “the whole reason” or “part of the reason” why.
Court losses
Judges across the U.S. have repeatedly limited the power of Musk and DOGE in response to its attempts to force sweeping changes across the federal bureaucracy.
- In March, Musk and DOGE employees were barred from accessing Americans’ personal information in Social Security Administration systems.
- Also last month, they were blocked from dismantling the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the accelerated shutdown of the U.S. Agency for International Development was deemed likely unconstitutional.
- In February, DOGE’s access to sensitive Treasury payment system information was temporarily restricted.
