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While Donald Trump might be shocking our economy into a recession with poorly thought out trade wars, he and his administration have been doing everything in their power to try and protect the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, and his many business interests.
The Financial Times reports that, among the many federal firings perpetrated by Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency outfit, around 30 workers from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration were let go. A significant number of these workers were from the “office of vehicle automation safety” which assesses safety for self-driving cars.
The NHTSA has eight active investigations into Tesla’s operations, particularly focusing on its self-driving software. These investigations stem from numerous high-profile crashes and more than 10,000 public complaints. Recently, the NHTSA began investigating over 2.5 million Teslas following multiple reports of crashes connected to a feature allowing owners to control cars remotely. Additionally, 363,000 Teslas were recalled in February due to unsafe behaviors in the “Full Self-Driving” software.
In December, before taking office, a document leaked showing that Trump’s transition team wanted to scrap the federally mandated crash-reporting requirements self-driving cars are compelled to give. Scrapping the system would be convenient for Musk, since Teslas have made up more than half of the crashes reported since 2021.
Tesla’s value has been falling as Musk’s popularity reaches new lows, with the company suffering historically poor sales, and recalling nearly all of its Cybertrucks for being a road hazard.
At the same time, the Trump administration has initiated a multi-pronged campaign to boost Tesla’s fortunes. This includes Trump himself hawking Teslas in front of the White House; Cabinet officials running around to media outlets urging Americans to buy Tesla stock; and his top cop, Attorney General Pam Bondi, threatening both American citizens and lawmakers who criticize Musk or his EV company.
Eliminating the people responsible for evaluating the safety of Tesla’s faulty self-driving software is just the latest example of the neon bright conflict of interest posed by Trump’s top donor.
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