CNN Business reporter Allison Morrow on Thursday took stock of billionaire Elon Musk’s recent business and political failings, which she described as a “parade of humiliation” for the Tesla CEO.
In her column, Morrow said that Musk’s bad run started with “his $20 million losing bet on the pro-Trump candidate for the Wisconsin Supreme Court” and then continued when “Tesla reported its biggest sales drop ever, falling 13% in the first quarter, while its No. 1 rival grew revenue by 60% in the same time period.”
The final blow came after word leaked that Trump was reportedly feeling antsy to give Musk the boot from the White House, although the White House denied that report’s veracity.
ALSO READ: GOP senator moves to weaken Trump’s tariff powers in latest sign of Republican rebellion
“In short: Voters, customers, investors and the MAGA elite say the Elon Musk show has lost the plot,” she wrote. “Musk has shed more than a quarter of his total net worth since January as Tesla shares have tanked.”
Additionally, Morrow said that there is little indication that Tesla, Musk’s flagship electric car company, has any viable business plan to regain the customers it has lost since Musk began his foray into politics.
“So far, various attempts to stem the bleeding have only made things worse,” she explained. “A live Tesla sales pitch with Trump on the South Lawn reeked of desperation. The Commerce secretary’s urging of regular Americans to buy Tesla shares, similarly, fell flat. And the FBI threatening to prosecute Tesla vandals as domestic terrorists — a wild re-imagination of the meaning of ‘terrorism,’ according to legal experts — only reinforced the sense of desperation around the brand.”