According to former Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Joe Biden, her previous superior, erred significantly by omitting Tesla CEO Elon Musk from a 2021 White House gathering focused on electric vehicles.
In August 2021, Biden convened an EV event at the White House, hosting executives from General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis. However, Musk was excluded, despite Tesla’s position as the nation’s foremost EV manufacturer.
“I mention in the book my belief that excluding Elon Musk from our large EV event was a significant misstep,” Harris disclosed to Fortune Editor-in-Chief Alyson Shontell during the news outlet’s Most Powerful Women Summit in Washington, D.C. She was referencing her memoir, “107 Days,” where she criticized Biden for initially pursuing re-election despite concerns about his health.
“I mean, here we have the leading American innovator in this sector,” Harris remarked about Musk, who also holds the CEO position at SpaceX.
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Musk’s exclusion was largely interpreted as a gesture of support for the United Auto Workers and organized labor in general, given that Tesla’s facilities are non-union. Harris noted in her book that she felt Biden was “signaling disapproval of Musk’s stance against unions,” but she also believed that omitting him, as the industry’s leader, “simply lacks logic.”
Then–White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki explained that the event showcased “the three largest employers of the United Auto Workers,” highlighting the non-union status of Tesla’s workforce.
When questioned about whether Musk’s exclusion was a consequence of his workers’ non-union status, Psaki responded to reporters: “I’ll allow you to reach your own conclusions.”
The Biden administration defended its decision to invite only these automakers, citing them as crucial partners in the president’s initiative to promote union jobs.
Harris asserted that presidents should “transcend political allegiances” when acknowledging technological breakthroughs.
“Therefore, I considered it a mistake. While I don’t personally know Elon Musk, I imagine it deeply affected him and influenced his viewpoint,” she stated.
Musk indeed seemed offended by his exclusion from the event, frequently criticizing Biden thereafter.
“It does seem strange that Tesla wasn’t invited,” Musk posted on social media at the time.
A month later, he commented that the Biden administration appeared to be “controlled by unions” and was “not the most supportive administration.”
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Following Musk’s discovery that Tesla would be excluded, administration officials reportedly offered an apology, according to The Wall Street Journal. Biden’s aides subsequently tried to smooth things over, but tensions persisted.
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Harris’s statements on Tuesday echoed a section from her recent book, where she described the Biden administration’s choice to exclude Tesla as a misjudgment that seemed to alienate Musk, who later became a prominent financial supporter of current President Donald Trump.
“Musk never forgave it,” she penned.
Musk later endorsed Trump in the 2024 election and contributed approximately $300 million to Republican campaign endeavors.
