Elon Musk claims 'people want to kill me and hurt Tesla' over billionaire's job for Donald Trump
by Jacob Paul · LBCBy Jacob Paul
Elon Musk has claimed people are out to kill him and destroy his electric car company as the Tesla boss faces growing calls to resign.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
The billionaire and close Donald Trump ally was recently made head of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) which is tasked with slashing Government waste and cutting the size of the federal bureaucracy.
So far, DOGE has executed mass layoffs, while removing multiple federal programs and funding for medical research
Musk has claimed certain individuals 'want to kill me' because of DOGE's actions.
He said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday night: "It turns out when you take away people's... the money that they're receiving fraudulently, they get very upset.
"And they basically want kill me because I'm stopping their fraud and they want to hurt Tesla because we're stopping the terrible waste and corruption in the government. And, well, I guess they're bad people. Bad people do bad things."
He repeated a claim made by many conservative lawmakers, including right-wing conspiracy-peddling Republican Marjorie Taylor Greene.
The theory goes that there could be left-wing groups coordinating the recent spate of protests and attacks on Tesla vehicles and dealerships.
'I think there are larger forces at work as well,' he said.
Musk added: "Who's funding and who's coordinating it? Because this is crazy. I've never seen anything like this."
He argued Tesla is a "peaceful company" that's "never done anything harmful".
"I've only done productive things, so I think we just have a deranged... I think there's some kind of mental illness going on here," Musk said.
This comes after Wealth manager Ross Gerber, one of Tesla's earliest investors, called for Musk to step down as Tesla’s CEO, citing his other businesses and involvement in Trump’s administration.
The millionaire’s wealth management company owns about 260,000 shares of Tesla stock - worth around $105 million, or just over £80 million.
He has recently sold off a large amount of Tesla shares, but it still makes up a significant part of his company’s portfolio, estimated to be worth about $2.3 billion.
Gerber said Tesla had been ‘neglected for too long’ and that Musk’s behaviour had led to the company being ‘absolutely’ in crisis.
Musk has sparked widespread outrage in recent months, after performing a gesture that many likened to a Hitler salute, slashing a huge number of US government jobs, and expressing his support for the German far-right party AfD.
Tesla’s market value, meanwhile, has plummeted by more than $800 billion since December, and is down a further 4% in the US on Tuesday.
Tesla is also struggling as demand for electric vehicles falls across the West, and Chinese competitors offer cheaper options that attract many consumers with smaller budgets.
Gerber told Sky News: "I think Tesla needs a new CEO … It's time for somebody to run Tesla."