Analysis of Tesla’s Third-Quarter Earnings
Beyond Tesla and his growing empire, Musk is playing an unprecedented role in the 2024 campaign as a political donor. He’s given at least $75 million to a super PAC that’s running much of Donald Trump’s ground game. He’s appeared on stage with Trump and held his own campaign rallies without the former president. And he’s fueled controversy by awarding cash payments of up to $1 million to registered voters in swing states who sign an online petition. Some election law experts say the practice violates the federal ban on paying individuals to vote or to fill out the paperwork to vote. Trump has embraced Musk in myriad ways, most recently in a fundraising pitch sent to his grassroots donors that read, “ELON MUSK WILL MATCH EVERY DOLLAR THIS TEXT RAISES!” The donation page linked in the solicitation says that the Tesla co-founder will match contributions until he’s reached the legal maximum of $924,600 that he can give to Trump’s campaign and the Republican Party.