"Trump Says He Has ‘No Choice’ But To Back EVs After Musk Endorsement"

"Ex-president, who previously denigrated electric vehicles, says they are suitable for a ‘small slice’ of the population"

"Donald Trump has for months denigrated electric vehicles, arguing their supporters should “rot in hell” and that assisting the nascent industry is “lunacy”. He now appears to have somewhat shifted his view thanks to the support of Elon Musk, the world’s richest person.

“I’m for electric cars, I have to be because Elon endorsed me very strongly,” Trump, the Republican nominee for US president, told supporters at a rally in Atlanta, Georgia, on Saturday.

The transactional nature of this relationship with Musk was made clear by the former president and convicted business fraudster, however. “So I have no choice,” said Trump, who then went on to say that electric vehicles were suitable for a “small slice” of the population and that “you want every type of car imaginable” to be available."

Oliver Milman reports for the Guardian August 5, 2024.

Source: Guardian, 08/07/2024