Ralph Nader Jumps In On The Tesla FUD

You may remember Ralph Nader as the guy who was always running for president against both Democrats and Republicans. I remember seeing him on the ballot when I first started voting almost 20 years ago. I remember thinking that he is always running and never wins, but still, he’s always running. I liked that about him — he kept at it. What I don’t like is how way off base he is when it comes to Tesla and EVs.

Nader addresses climate change as climate devastation–which is an apt term since humans are contributing to climate change and the devastation that ends up being the result of these drastic changes. However, attacking one of the only companies that are loud, vocal and actually is on the same team with him just shows how lost he is when it comes to Tesla. I believe he is reading the FUD and turning into the wrong channel when it comes to Tesla.

Nader talks about how Tesla is being challenged by several competing electric car models in 2020. I don’t think he means the Mercedes-Benz EQC since it’s being delayed until 2021. He also isn’t talking about the 243-Mile Kia Soul EV either–that’s also been delayed until next year. The Porsche Taycan had a lot of hype and although it would be a great way to bring in Porche lovers into the EV market, it failed also. It didn’t even make it to the 200-mile party and their deliveries are being delayed as well.

Tesla is now trading at a $100 billion market cap, as of yesterday. Perhaps Nader’s been subscribing to the FUD (it seems to have affected a lot of people) and believes, like a lot of the short sellers who want to see an American company go bankrupt, that Tesla is doomed. I personally think that if you are in politics, you shouldn’t seek to bash an American company based on what your friends think or based on what biased Wall Street analysts say on TV.

I think that perhaps you should research the company and its products more deeply before you determine it’s a failure. If Nader was truly paying attention, he would realize that in China, during a major trade war, Tesla did what no other foreign-owned company (not just American company) has ever done. It opened a factory that is 100% its own. He should notice that the Tesla Model 3 is far and away the best selling electric vehicle in the world, is the #1 best selling automobile of any kind in some countries, the industry is moving to electricity, and Tesla is the clear leader.

The answer to Elisabeth’s question in the above tweet is simple: Nader didn’t do his homework. He just threw in his $0.25 blindly. If you do this in poker, you lose. Unless, like me, you get lucky. But luck won’t be with Nader or the short sellers as Tesla continues to successfully make great products and deliver them.

Also, as someone deeply concerned about our climate crisis, it’s just unfortunate.