Democratic California Rep. Robert Garcia Tuesday condemned deliberate property damage at Tesla dealerships, despite his recent controversial rhetoric towards Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Garcia said that he would “absolutely” condemn any vandalism against Tesla, in response to a question from the Daily Caller News Foundation. His remarks were made just weeks after he claimed that Americans want Democratic leaders to bring “actual weapons” to the “fight” against Musk to protect “democracy” during a Feb. 12 appearance on CNN.
“Yeah, look, nobody should be doing any sort of vandalism, any sort of vandalism with a Tesla or anything else, of course, absolutely,” Garcia told the DCNF.
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“Well he is a dick, and I think he’s also harming the American public in an enormous way. What I think is really important and what the American public wants is for us to bring actual weapons to this bar fight,” Garcia said on CNN when asked whether personal attacks against Musk were an effective strategy. “This is an actual fight for democracy, for the future of this country, and it’s important to push back on the chairperson of this committee.”
During the CNN appearance, Garcia also criticized Musk’s efforts to overturn several federal government agencies.
“We went into exactly what Elon Musk is trying to do. Dismantling the Department of Labor, dismantling the Department of Education, dismantling all of our consumer protection agencies, and so it’s all important, but it’s also important to get the attention of the American public and call Elon Musk out for what he is and to make people know that [Republican Georgia Rep.] Marjorie Taylor Greene is not a serious legislator, and she shouldn’t be treated as such,” Garcia added.
Tesla dealerships and charging stations across the U.S. have been struck by a wave of vandalism in recent weeks amid ongoing backlash against Musk due to his close ties to President Donald Trump, as well as his ongoing attempts to slash unnecessary spending and eliminate waste across the federal government as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi denounced the recent string of vandalism targeting Tesla dealerships in a March 20 statement, calling it a “wave of domestic terrorism.” Relatedly, Trump slammed Tesla vandals in a March 21 post on Truth Social, writing that he is looking forward to “watching the sick terrorist thugs get 20 year jail sentences for what they are doing to Elon Musk and Tesla.”
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Director Kash Patel confirmed in a Monday post on X that his agency has created a new task force dedicated to investigating the Tesla attacks.
Garcia’s office did not respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
Myles Morell contributed to reporting.
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