- U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced criminal charges against individuals who bombed Teslas.
- Gov. Spencer Cox said protesters that cause property damage will be imprisoned.
- Anti-DOGE protesters plan to "crash" a Republican event for Rep. Blake Moore on Saturday.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said that those protesting Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency by vandalizing Tesla vehicles will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
The governor praised Americans’ freedom to publicly demonstrate during a monthly televised news conference on Thursday before making it clear that the widespread attacks against Musk’s company will not be tolerated in the Beehive State.
“People should protest to their heart’s content — and they should be imprisoned for any property damage or breaking of any laws,” Cox said.
On Tuesday, Las Vegas counter-terrorism detectives responded to a Tesla service center where an individual had set several cars ablaze with Molotov cocktails.
The event marked just the latest in a long list of destructive acts targeting Musk’s electric vehicle brand since the billionaire entrepreneur, and Tesla CEO, became President Donald Trump’s senior adviser overseeing efforts to audit and overhaul federal agencies.
U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi announced on Thursday criminal charges in relation to three other attacks, in Oregon, Colorado and South Carolina, where Molotov cocktails were also used to fire bomb Tesla dealerships or charging stations.
“The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended,” Bondi said. “Let this be a warning: if you join this wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put you behind bars.”
Over the last two months, there have been at least a dozen high-profile instances of property damage at Tesla locations across the country, from Washington State to Massachusetts, prompting local and federal law enforcement to launch investigations into potential domestic terrorist activity.
Are the Tesla attacks domestic terrorism?
At a White House event last week designed to show the president’s support for Musk’s car company, Trump stated he would label violent protestors who destroy Teslas as “domestic terrorists.”
In reaction to Tuesday’s bombing of Teslas in Las Vegas, Musk said, “This level of violence is insane and deeply wrong,” and asked whether there had ever been “such a level of coordinated violence against a peaceful company?”
Utah Sen. Mike Lee, a well-known ally of Musk and his DOGE efforts, responded on Wednesday to a video showing a parking meter in Brooklyn, New York, with stickers saying, “Who will Kill Elon?”
“This is a massive criminal conspiracy,” Lee said. “It must be investigated(.) Those responsible must be prosecuted(.)”
Not only is property destruction illegal, it is also counter-productive for a movement whose goal is to push for changes to public policy, according to Cox.
“You’re not helping your cause at all. If you want to lose the popular opinion, just start setting people’s vehicles on fire,” Cox said. “It’s inexcusable, it’s stupid and it’s evil, and we will arrest you and we will send you to jail.”
A national organization that has protested Musk’s role in Washington, D.C., announced this week that it plans to “crash” Utah Rep. Blake Moore’s appearance at a private Republican Party luncheon this Saturday because he is a co-chair of the congressional DOGE caucus.
Moore’s campaign said they were told to expect several busloads of protesters. The group, “50501,” describes itself as promoting a “peaceful movement” that opposes the second Trump administration.
Why do people oppose DOGE?
With his promise of drastically shrinking the federal bureaucracy, Musk has drawn praise from advocates of limited-government and fierce opposition from those who feel DOGE’s seemingly indiscriminate cuts are harming important programs and their employees.
Since he burst onto the scene with a small army of software engineers and artificial intelligence experts, Musk has recommended the elimination of USAID, notified thousands of federal workers of layoffs and secured a disputed $115 billion in savings from canceled contracts.
On Thursday, Cox told reporters that he loves “the idea of DOGE” because he has long called for more responsible government spending. But he acknowledged that the advisory body’s strategy has sometimes appeared “clumsy” or “done the wrong way.”
“My concern,” Cox said, “is that if done poorly, the backlash will be so severe that it will end — and we need it to continue.”
While increasing government efficiency is always going to be “hard,” Cox said there is a way to do it without engendering as much anger, including by having states reach out with resources to help the newly unemployed.
The state has already reached out to individuals at risk of being let go to inform them that the Department of Workforce Services will help fired workers find employment, Cox said.
“We will try to get you another job so you can provide for your family. That’s the way we should do it,” Cox said. “We have to reduce spending, but we should do it in a compassionate way that that recognizes that these are real people here.”