Donald Trump Has Called Tesla Vandals "Terrorists," but Why Are They Doing It?

In the long history of the United States, vandalism has been committed for all sorts of reasons. Sometimes, kids just like breaking stuff, and sometimes, people commit acts of vandalism to protest someone or something that they don't like.

Recently, Teslas have been the subject of vandalism across the country, with some people setting fire to them or shooting them.

Following these acts of vandalism, many want to know what these vandals are trying to accomplish. Here's what we know.

While most of the vandals don't offer an explicit explanation for their actions, the answer seems to be to protest Elon Musk and his prominent role in the Trump administration. Specifically, people are protesting Musk's activities with DOGE, an informal department that has taken a wrecking ball through the federal government, often with unpredictable consequences.

Vandalism is just one part of the Tesla protests, which have also included people showing up at Tesla showrooms around the country in protest of the brand, of which Musk is the CEO. All of these protests have definitely hurt Musk's net worth, as the Tesla stock price has fallen precipitously, and it has become difficult for those who oppose Musk and Trump to own a Tesla without feeling guilty about it.

Although it's not clear what legal justification they might have for these claims, both Donald Trump and Attorney General Pam Bondi have suggested that vandalizing a Tesla is "nothing short of domestic terrorism."

Bondi went further, promising to “impose severe consequences on those involved in these attacks, including those operating behind the scenes to coordinate and fund these crimes.”

These claims of domestic terrorism are somewhat ironic given Trump's flexible definition of the term. After all, this is the same man who pardoned the people who stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6, even though that action more squarely fits the definition of domestic terrorism than lighting a few Teslas on fire. Property crime is, of course, a crime, and should be punished as such, but it's clear that these vandals have made their point.

Trump, meanwhile, has suggested that the people who are vandalizing Teslas are being paid to do so, offering no evidence to support his claim.

“I think there are larger forces at work as well,” Musk said in a Fox News interview. “I mean, I don’t know who’s funding it and who’s coordinating it because this is this is crazy.”

Of course, it's also possible that people are genuinely so mad at Trump and Musk that they are acting of their own accord. These actions are radical, but so is dismantling the federal government, ignoring both the constitutional prerogatives of Congress and the role of the courts. Musk and Trump believe that they should be allowed to run things without any opposition, which may be why they find these protests so surprising.