Trump Calls for California to Let Tesla Factory Open--Update
May 12 2020 - 12:17PM
Dow Jones News
By Rebecca Ballhaus
President Trump has backed Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Elon
Musk's decision to resume production of cars at its California
plant, siding with the electric-vehicle maker over the local
government in a high-profile standoff as parts of the state
consider reopening.
Mr. Trump weighed in on Twitter Tuesday, writing: "California
should let Tesla & @elonmusk open the plant, NOW. It can be
done Fast & Safely!"
A day earlier, Mr. Musk tweeted that Tesla would restart
production in violation of rules set by Alameda County, where the
Silicon Valley auto maker has its lone U.S. car factory. The
facility manufactures the company's bestselling Model 3 compact car
and is where more than 10,000 people are employed.
"I will be on the line with everyone else. If anyone is
arrested, I ask that it only be me," the Tesla chief executive said
on Twitter. The company stopped production at the Fremont, Calif.,
factory on March 23.
The county health department said Monday that it had notified
the company that it could only maintain "minimum basic operations"
until its plan to reopen received approval. The company was
expected to submit a site-specific plan Monday, the county
said.
"We hope that Tesla will likewise comply without further
enforcement measures," the county said in a statement.
Mr. Trump in recent weeks has begun escalating pressure on state
and local governments around the country to start reopening after
months of sheltering in place due to the coronavirus pandemic. The
president has repeatedly indicated he fears the economic toll of
shutting down will be greater than the harm caused by virus, which
has infected more than 1.3 million and killed more than 80,000 in
the U.S.
Tesla on Saturday filed a federal lawsuit asking a judge to
overturn the county's order that idled U.S. production of its Model
3 car and other vehicles.
Mr. Musk and the president both frequently turn to Twitter to
argue their cases in public. Mr. Trump has frequently praised Mr.
Musk and has paid attention to his Twitter account. Earlier this
year, Mr. Trump hailed Mr. Musk as one of the world's "great
geniuses," equating him to Thomas Edison.
They haven't always gotten along. In 2017, Mr. Musk stepped down
from high-profile White House advisory groups shortly after the
president said the U.S. would withdraw from the Paris climate
accord. Mr. Musk said he made a mission of Tesla to popularize
electric vehicles as part of an effort to curb greenhouse gas
emissions.
More recently, the CEO and president have found common ground in
other areas, such as promoting U.S.-based manufacturing. Mr. Trump
was the first to suggest Tesla would build a new factory in the
U.S., something Mr. Musk later confirmed he was aiming to do
somewhere in the middle of America.
In recent days, as Mr. Musk has intensified his fight with local
government authorities, the CEO has used language similar to that
raised in protests elsewhere in the nation against lockdown rules,
including saying that such orders violates civil liberties. Mr.
Musk on Twitter has said people should be given back their freedom,
a message Mr. Trump also has shared on the social-media
platform.
Mr. Musk has argued that the infection rate of Covid-19 is low
and the damage being done to the economy by remaining shutdown is
greater than the virus.
Write to Rebecca Ballhaus at Rebecca.Ballhaus@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 12, 2020 12:02 ET (16:02 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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