Trump jokes about electric cars after thanking Musk for endorsement

The former president's favor for a celebrity endorsement wasn't without some ribbing about one of the tech entrepreneur's businesses.

“I love the car… but… you have a challenge.”

(Video: Fox News)

While the Democratic Party went from “Riding with Biden” to the present with Kamala as Vice President Kamala Harris considered her own running mate, former President Donald Trump held strong from GOP favorite to candidate, picking up influential sponsors along the way.

Among them was “smart as you get” Tesla CEO Elon Musk, whom the president reiterated his praise for on Friday with a warning about the practical limitations of electric vehicles.

Speaking at Turning Point Faith's “The Believers Summit” in West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump didn't go overboard when he said: “I love the car. I think it's great. And some people love them and some people love them they want. But I think if you're going to travel long distances, you're kind of challenged.”

In support of his point, the former commander in chief had raised the importance of American manufacturing and infrastructure as he shouted: “We don't want to have an electric car where everyone has an electric car that doesn't go far. , it's done in China, it costs too much.”

“And by the way, and I want to thank Elon Musk for supporting me, I have to tell you,” Trump told the crowd. “And I said, 'You know, Elon, remember I love electric cars. I think your car is great. I love it, but it's not for everyone'”.

The president added that the endorsement from the richest man in the world didn't come with any strings attached as he continued: “And you know, he never said to me, 'Look, I'll endorse you, but you know, you've done a-'”

As for the brass tacks, Trump noted: “You know in the Midwest, somewhere in the Midwest, they put in eight charging stations. You know that, right? They spent $9 billion. Now , you know what a charging station is. It's the equivalent of a gas pump, right? That would mean 9 billion dollars if they did it all over the country, all the designated locations, it would cost $5 trillion. So our country would have to declare bankruptcy.”

The GOP leader previously marveled at the innovations of Musk's companies, including SpaceX for engineering reusable landing rockets, which would have taken the federal government “another 50 to 100 years. But it was Elon!”

“I said, 'That's the coolest thing I've ever seen.' And you say how long would it take the government to do that, I don't think they've ever heard of it. Maybe they haven't heard of it yet . But, you know, he's a very progressive person and he's doing other things that are great … we have to make life good for our smart people,” Trump had said at a rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan. “And he's just as smart as you.”

Electric vehicle owners have reported their own difficulties on the road, even with their trips planned in advance, as even an Axios reporter had lamented having “overconfidence in our car's driving range” when they traveled from Florida to Michigan, where she and her husband had to “practically limp to a charging station as the battery warnings displayed increasingly urgent messages.”

A similar experience for another driver over Labor Day weekend 2023 turned a drive that should have taken a few hours into an overnight ordeal due to inoperable chargers, lines and excessive delays for the slow loading

At the time of this publication, Musk had not publicly responded to Trump's comments at Friday's event, but he did react to the announcement that the president would return to Butler, Pennsylvania to honor the victims of the rally where judged a would-be murderer. to take his life.

AX, the billionaire simply wrote about the decision: “Based.”

based on

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 26, 2024

Staff writer

A native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College, where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and seeker of truth, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and dog, and when he's not researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel ·the.

Latest messages from Kevin Haggerty (see everything)

We have zero tolerance for comments that contain violence, racism, profanity, profanity, doxing, or rude behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it, click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for engaging with us in a fruitful conversation.