XPost: alt.fan.rush-limbaugh, alt.politics.republicans, talk.politics.guns
'Tesla protests are not a grassroots movement, but carefully organized campaign'
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https://www.foxnews.com/politics/astroturf-critics-speculate-tesla-protests-not-grassroots-movement-carefully-organized-campaign>
'Protests unfolded outside of Tesla showrooms across the country this
weekend over Elon Musk's role helping lead President Donald Trump's
Department of Government Efficiency, sparking questions to fly as to who
is funding the purported "grassroots" demonstrations.
"Who is funding and organizing all these paid protests?" Musk posted to
X early Sunday morning, accompanied by a video clip of podcast host Joe
Rogan discussing left-wing protests in recent days.
A "Tesla Takedown" movement formed in recent days, with more than 200
protests planned on Saturday in the U.S., and another few hundred
planned protests in Canada and Europe as part of the "global day of
action." In the U.S. the protests slated for Saturday were promoted by
actors, filmmakers, congressional legislators, academics and activists
who led a "mass mobilizing call" last week to rally support, and
described in the media as a "grassroots" effort to buck Musk and Trump,
while working to tank Tesla's stock.
Tesla locations have faced violence in recent weeks as Musk and his DOGE
team investigate federal agencies in search of government overspending,
fraud and mismanagement, while critics accuse the Trump administration
of creating an "oligarchy" by tapping the billionaire to help streamline federal government operations.
DOGE is a temporary cross-departmental organization that was established
to slim down and streamline the federal government. The group will be
dissolved on July 4, 2026.
FEDS ON ALERT FOR TESLA 'GLOBAL DAY OF ACTION' AFTER NATIONWIDE VIOLENCE
LEADS TO ARRESTS
Musk
Tesla CEO Elon Musk introduces the Cybertruck at Tesla's design studio
on Nov. 21, 2019, in Hawthorne, California. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)
The protests on Saturday were billed as "nonviolent" and showcased
people line dancing outside Teslas stores while holding anti-swastika
and anti-Musk signs. Others protested for a couple of hours outside of
Tesla dealerships, local media outlets reported, with some holding signs reading "DON'T BUY SWASTICAR," or "Nobody elected Elon."
THE LOUDEST SILENCE: TOP DEMOCRATS REMAIN MUM AMID VIOLENT ATTACKS ON
TESLA
Tesla owner reacts after suspected vandal rams four-wheeler into
vehicle: Scared 'every day'Video
The U.S. protests on Saturday stretched from New York to Maryland to
Texas to California. Many of the rallies saw dozens of protesters, while
larger protests, such as one in Chicago, drew crowds of over 100 people,
and another in New York drew hundreds of protesters, various media
reports show.
VANDAL STRIKES CYBERTRUCK, TESLA OWNER HITS BACK
"Tesla Takedown is a peaceful protest movement. We oppose violence,
vandalism and destruction of property. This protest is a lawful exercise
of our First Amendment right to peaceful assembly," the Action Network,
a left-wing advocacy group, described the nationwide protests online.
Tesla protest
Weekly demonstrations continue outside of Tesla stores to protest Elon
Musk and his role at the Department of Government Efficiency, March 29,
2025, in the West Village neighborhood of New York City. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)
"Rally attenders must be peaceful and nonviolent," another left-wing
group, Indivisible, described a protest in New Jersey, which included directions on what to chant at passersby. "No vandalism of Tesla cars or stores; or insults of Tesla drivers permitted! When Tesla drivers pass
we will chant, 'Sell your Tesla, Trade it in! instead of booing. STAY
OFF THE ROADWAY! It is legal for protesters to be on the sidewalk but
NOT to be on the roadway or block entrances to businesses, including
Tesla. STAY OFF TESLA PROPERTY! We are not allowed on any private
property. Indivisible policy forbids engaging with counter protesters
(and other protestors) this is for the safety of all people."
A local news outlet, media personalities and conservative critics have speculated that the recent anti-Tesla protests are embroiled in
"astroturfing," which is defined by Merriam-Webster as a campaign
"falsely made to appear grassroots."
DISABLED TESLA OWNER TARGETED IN VANDALISM, SAYS ANTI-MUSK PROTESTERS
ARE JUST 'HURTING FAMILIES'
tesla protest in Ohio
Protesters rally outside a Tesla showroom in Columbus, Ohio, on
Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Brian Kaiser/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"I know when something is AstroTurf. Fun fact: I was among the first
reporters (if not first) to put the concept of ‘Astro Turf’ lobbying
into the pages of the Wall Street Journal as an international trade
reporter," former Wall Street Journal correspondent Asra Nomani posted
to X after reporting on a Tesla protest last Saturday in Tysons,
Virginia, outside of Washington, D.C.
TESLA TAKEDOWN: ANTI-MUSK PROTESTERS MOBILIZE FOR GLOBAL DAY OF PROTEST
AT HUNDREDS OF TESLA LOCATIONS
"While local #TeslaTakedown protests may appear spontaneous and community-driven, they are the product of well-funded, tightly
coordinated campaigns led by national political organizations like the Indivisible Project,
http://MoveOn.org, and professional protest firms,"
Nomani continued.
Nomani authored a piece in the Fairfax Times titled, "Local
#TeslaTakedown reveals ‘grassroots’ protests are AstroTurf."
Hundreds of Tesla protests planned across the globeVideo
"These groups use digital platforms, pre-scripted chants, pre-printed
signs, and nationwide toolkits to manufacture the appearance of
grassroots activism, and the messages on Tyco Road mirror the language
of protests nationwide. This kind of organizing is known as
‘AstroTurfing’ – a term used to describe top-down efforts that mimic authentic, bottom-up civic engagement," she continued on X.
Podcast host Joe Rogan, in a clip shared by Musk, speculated that
protesters in past days were receiving money to take part in the
anti-Tesla protests.
Tesla Takedown
A banner in front of a Tesla store in Berlin-Reinickendorf, Germany, on
March 29, 2025. (Jörg Carstensen/picture alliance via Getty Images)
"For a lot of losers, a lot of people who don't have things going well
in their life, and I was a loser at many points in my life, is somebody
called me up and said, ‘Hey man, want to make 400 bucks an just go to
this Kamala Harris rally?' I’m like, ‘Yeah, let’s go,'" "Joe Rogan Experience" released on Saturday.
MUSK SHOULD ‘NOT BE SURPRISED’ WHEN POLITICS ‘COME FOR’ HIS BUSINESS, DEM REP SAYS
"They were giving out $1,000 bucks for people to protest, I think it was
Tesla. They had like the rules of engagement if someone comes after you…
are you organizing gangs? Are you guys paying money for people and then literally saying to them, 'Here's what happens if you engage in
violence?' Why is that even on the table? I thought this was peaceful protesting," he continued, noting he has not seen any reports of
pro-Tesla individuals waging violence.
Tesla vehicles were set on fire in Las Vegas
Five Tesla vehicles were set on fire and shot at in what police are investigating as a "targeted attack" in Las Vegas on March 18. (Hal
Sparks via Storyful)
Other X users took to social media to speculate and accuse the Tesla
protests of being an example of astroturfing.
"ASTROTURF: Rep Jasmine Crockett is working with the Soros-backed paid
protest group 'Indivisible' to organize canned protests at Tesla stores
across the US. Here the Democrat congresswoman is asking for Elon to be
'taken down' for her birthday," popular conservative X account Amuse
posted to X.
"NEW: Tesla protesters stop protesting at the Southlake Texas Tesla
store the moment clock read 12 PM, according to @Carlos__Turcios. 'They
all immediately left the minute it was 12:00 pm.' Odd," Trending
Politics co-owner Colin Rugg posted to X.
TESLA GROUP LEADER WARNS VIOLENT PROTESTS AGAINST CAR OWNERS ARE JUST
THE 'STARTING POINT'
Reports that some protesters packed their bags at exactly noon in Texas
sparked further accusations of "astroturfing," including one user who
responded to Rugg saying, "Paid astroturf. This entire op is fake.
Follow the money."
Tesla vehicles were set on fire in Las Vegas
Attorney General Pam Bondi vowed that violent protesters who attack and
cause damage at Tesla showrooms will face the full force of the law.
(Hal Sparks via Storyful)
Seattle radio host Jason Rantz shared a photo on X showing a Tesla
protester holding a sheet of scripted chants to reportedly deliver
during a demonstration, which Musk called "interesting" in a response X
post.
Fox News Digital reached out to Indivisible, the Action Network and
MoveOn.org regarding the astroturf speculation on Sunday morning, but
did not immediately receive comment.
The protests on Saturday were overwhelmingly peaceful. Department of
Justice chief Pam Bondi previously vowed earlier this month that violent protesters who attack and cause damage at Tesla showrooms and other
properties will face the full force of the law.
Woman protesting Tesla
Baltimore area residents protest the Trump administration and Elon Musk
at a Tesla car dealership, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Dominic
Gwinn/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
"The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended," Bondi
said. "Let this be a warning: if you join this wave of domestic
terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put
you behind bars."
A Las Vegas man was arrested earlier this month for his alleged
involvement in a Molotov cocktail attack on a Tesla property. The
suspect in that case faces a bevy of felony charges, including three
counts of arson, three counts of possession of an explosive device, five
counts of shooting into a car and four counts of destroying personal
property, according to local police.
Musk remarked on X on Saturday that it is "insanely ironic" that "the
people shooting bullets into Tesla stores, burning down cars and
generally being violent are calling me a Nazi when I have done literally
zero violence at all.'
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