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Minnesota Governor and former vice presidential candidate Tim Walz (D) and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk engaged in a public exchange of criticisms over Tesla’s turbulent stock performance in early 2025. The electric vehicle giant has faced significant challenges, coinciding with Musk’s growing political alliance with President Donald Trump.
Tesla’s Declining Stock Price
Speaking at an event in Wisconsin on Tuesday night, Walz took a jab at Tesla’s declining stock price, admitting that he keeps an eye on it for personal amusement.
“$225 and dropping,” Walz remarked, referencing Tesla’s closing price that day—a more than 50% drop from its December peak. However, contrary to his statement, Tesla shares rebounded the following morning, rising more than 3% to $233 at market open.
Musk quickly responded to Walz’s comments, taking to his social media platform X to post a pointed retort.
“Sometimes when I need a little boost, I look at the @JDVance portrait in the @WhiteHouse and thank the Lord ?,” Musk wrote, celebrating Trump and Vice President JD Vance’s election victory over Democratic nominee Kamala Harris and Walz.
Tim Walz Takes Further Dig
Walz escalated the feud by suggesting that Tesla owners should consider removing the brand’s logo from their vehicles in response to Musk’s political leanings.
Tesla has led a rocky start to 2025 on Wall Street, with its stock down 44% year-to-date as of Tuesday. The decline places it at the very bottom of the S&P 500’s performance rankings. Despite surging nearly 90% in the weeks following Trump’s election win, Tesla shares have since fallen to a level about 7% lower than their Election Day price.
While other major tech firms, including Apple and Google, have also struggled in the market, analysts attribute Tesla’s losses largely to Musk’s increasing political polarizations. Several Wall Street firms have downgraded Tesla’s sales forecasts, citing a downturn in regions where Musk’s outspoken right-wing views have sparked backlash. In Germany, for instance, Tesla’s February sales plummeted 76% year-over-year.
Tesla has also faced public protests, with showrooms across the U.S. becoming hotspots for demonstrations. In Las Vegas, multiple Tesla vehicles were set on fire, an incident Musk condemned as domestic terrorism.
“Tesla just makes electric cars and has done nothing to deserve these evil attacks,” Musk wrote on X on Tuesday.
Musk Vs. Tim Walz: A David vs. Goliath Political Battle
Reflecting on his public spat with Musk, Walz embraced the narrative of an underdog taking on one of the world’s wealthiest figures.
“I think there’s something poetic about a schoolteacher being in this fight against the richest man in the world,” Walz, a former high school teacher, told The Minnesota Star Tribune on Tuesday.
Musk’s fortune dwarfs Walz’s net worth by an extraordinary margin. According to Forbes, Musk’s net worth currently stands at $321.4 billion, largely due to his stakes in Tesla and his private aerospace company SpaceX. In contrast, Walz’s wealth is estimated to be just over $1 million—roughly 300,000 times less than Musk’s vast fortune.
