The Vancouver Auto Show opens its doors to visitors today, but those visitors will have fewer vehicles to peruse than they would have yesterday. The show’s organizers made the decision to remove Tesla as an exhibitor on the eve of its opening. It appears the safety of attendees was their primary concern.
“The Vancouver Auto Show’s primary concern is the safety of attendees, exhibitors, and staff. This decision will ensure all attendees can be solely focused on enjoying the many positive elements of the event.” – Eric Nicholl, Executive Director
Tesla vehicles and dealerships have been the target of protests and vandalism in both the U.S. and Canada recently. The company’s CEO, Elon Musk, and his close association with U.S. President Donald Trump are to blame, particularly the trade war between the two countries that was started by Trump, the mass layoffs occurring within the U.S. government at Musk’s supposed command, and the President’s fixation on making Canada a U.S. state.
Elbows Out
Canadians have not taken kindly to President Trump’s wish to make the country and its 41 million inhabitants part of the United States, a desire that Tesla’s Musk endorsed when he posted on his social media platform that Canada is “not a real country.” The post has since been deleted.
Since then, Canadians have begun a petition to revoke Musk’s Canadian citizenship. The petition claims he has engaged in activities that go against the national interests of Canada, influenced the country’s elections, and become a member of an adversarial nation’s government. At the time of this writing it has over 375,000 signatures.
British Columbia has also punitively removed Tesla from a list of automakers eligible for consumers to receive rebates for installing an electric vehicle charger. The rebate is $350 for the purchase and installation of an EV charger at one’s home. BC’s premier, David Eby, confirmed the exclusion is targeted when he said, “It’s just for Tesla and it’s because of Elon Musk.”
TopSpeed’s Take
It’s not surprising something like this has happened to Tesla. The automaker is an innocent bystander being riddled with bullets meant for its CEO, who lately appears to be more an employee of the U.S. government than the man running Tesla. With protests at Tesla dealerships across the continent and vandalism of Tesla vehicles in the streets, the effects on its business are piling up. While sales figures for the first quarter have yet to arrive, we expect them to indicate that owning a Tesla has gone from Apple-like status to being a pariah.
The quick fix is for Musk to step down as CEO of Tesla. At this point, is he even performing a function in that role considering how much time he’s spending working for the federal government, as well as the fact he’s CEO of two other companies? But would Musk’s ego ever allow him to step down from Tesla? And even if he did step down, Musk would still be the largest single shareholder of the company. Customers would know that a dollar in Tesla’s pocket would still benefit Musk. Unfortunately for Tesla, its fortunes are tied to its contentious CEO.
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