Rachel Maddow’s Tesla Allegations Unravel as Elon Musk Fires Back [WATCH]

MSNBC host Rachel Maddow faced scrutiny this week after falsely claiming that President Donald Trump awarded Tesla CEO Elon Musk a $400 million military contract in a case of political “self-dealing.”

However, new revelations show that the proposal was actually submitted under the Biden administration and has since been put on hold by the Trump administration.

During her Wednesday night program, Maddow accused Musk of influencing the Trump administration to approve a lucrative contract for Tesla Cybertrucks, suggesting that Musk’s political support for Trump was financially motivated.

Dennis Quaid’s #1 Warning for Americans

“The Cybertruck is not just supposed to be ‘tough’ like a pickup truck. It’s supposed to be, like, inhuman, super duper tough,” Maddow said sarcastically.

She went on to mock the vehicle’s rollout and questioned why taxpayer money would be spent on what she called “paper weights.”

Maddow implied that Musk’s financial investments in Trump’s campaign were part of a quid pro quo scheme, stating:

“Somehow, Musk convinced the United States government, specifically the United States Department of State, that the taxpayers of the United States of America should spend $400 million buying ‘armored Tesla production units.’”

She concluded the segment with her trademark mock outrage, declaring: “This is definitely not illegal or profoundly corrupt.”

BANG! Rachel Maddow just got CLOWNED on live television:

Maddow: “Musk has convinced the government to spend $400 million on armored Tesla’s. Definitely not corrupt and ripping us all off?”

Watters: “Donald Trump didn’t give that contract to Musk.. Biden did.” pic.twitter.com/v4OQJCRZds

— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) February 14, 2025

However, Maddow’s claims unraveled after Sawyer Merritt, a Tesla investor, fact-checked her statements on X (formerly Twitter).

Merritt pointed out that the contract proposal originated under the Biden-Harris administration and was last modified on December 13, 2024, when Joe Biden was still president.

“She conveniently left out that the procurement list was revised in Dec 2024, when Biden was President. The Tesla line item was last modified on December 13, 2024,” Merritt wrote.

“Unfortunately, because Rachel entirely left out this important context, many of her 1.7 million nightly viewers will believe her misleading narrative.”

Tonight, Rachel Maddow led her show with a hit piece against the Cybertruck & Elon, suggesting the proposed $400M for armored Teslas was an example of “self-dealing.”

Yet she conveniently left out that the procurement list was revised in Dec 2024, when Biden was President. The… pic.twitter.com/Hyu9uFrOe4

— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 13, 2025

Tesla remains the leading manufacturer of American-made electric vehicles, with all Teslas sold in the U.S. being built domestically.

Merritt argued that Tesla’s lower long-term costs could make them a more fiscally responsible choice for government contracts compared to traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.

Following a New York Times report on the controversy, the Trump administration denied that Musk or Tesla had received any government contracts for armored vehicles.

In a statement to Axios, a State Department spokesman clarified that the proposal was part of an initiative launched under Biden’s administration to explore private-sector interest in producing armored electric vehicles.

“The solicitation is on hold and there are no current plans to issue it,” the statement read.

“No government contract has been awarded to Tesla or any other vehicle manufacturer to produce armored electric vehicles for the Department of State.”

Musk himself dismissed the allegations, writing on X, “I’m pretty sure Tesla isn’t getting $400M. No one mentioned it to me, at least.” He then tagged Maddow’s account, asking, “Why the lie?”

I’m pretty sure Tesla isn’t getting $400M. No one mentioned it to me, at least.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 13, 2025

This latest controversy comes as Maddow faces a defamation lawsuit related to a previous false report.

In 2025, Maddow accused Dr. Mahendra Amin, a Georgia-based abortion doctor, of performing unnecessary hysterectomies on illegal immigrants in ICE custody.

Last month, a Georgia judge ruled that Amin’s lawsuit can proceed, with a jury trial set for April 22.

Maddow, who referred to Amin as the “uterus collector”, is expected to face questioning over the “verifiably false” claims made on her show.

As Maddow’s misleading reporting continues to face legal and public scrutiny, her latest Tesla-Trump conspiracy appears to be yet another flawed narrative that collapsed under basic fact-checking.

The opinions expressed by contributors and/or content partners are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views of LifeZette. Contact us for guidelines on submitting your own commentary.