Democratic Senator Mark Kelly, a former astronaut, rejected using his Tesla vehicle after the company’s CEO Elon Musk called him a “traitor” following Kelly’s visit to Ukraine.
Kelly said in a Facebook video on 14 March that it was the last time he drove to work in the Tesla vehicle made by Musk, who “turned out to be an asshole.” He will now use a white Chevrolet Tahoe instead.
“When I bought this thing, I didn’t think it was going to become a political issue. Every time I get in this car in the last 60 days or so, it reminds me of just how much damage Elon Musk and Donald Trump is doing to our country,” Kelly said.
The senator later explained he no longer wanted to drive a Tesla due to the activities of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk leads. The department has launched a campaign to fire tens of thousands of civil servants.
Democratic Senator Kelly made this decision shortly after a public dispute with Musk. Kelly had posted photos from his Ukraine visit amid paused US aid, calling for renewed support and stating that Donald Trump was trying to weaken Ukraine’s position. Musk responded to the senator’s post by labeling him a “traitor.”
The US military aid halt for Ukraine, which is reportedly renewed now, was announced after Zelenskyy-Trump dispute in the Oval Office on 28 February.
Kelly believes the car company has become a “moving billboard” for Musk’s work with President Donald Trump. “He is destroying people’s lives just to make room for a huge tax cut for billionaires like him,” Kelly stated.
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