Dem Rep Appears Not To Be Overly Concerned About Attacks On Americans’ Personal Property

Democratic Rep. Summer Lee of Pennsylvania appeared to downplay vandalism against Tesla vehicles and dealerships in a video posted on YouTube Tuesday.

Vandalism directed at Tesla-owned cars, the company White House senior advisor Elon Musk serves as CEO of, has spiked due to Musk’s involvement with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which the agency claims has identified $160 billion in savings sine President Donald Trump took office Jan. 20. Lee instead claimed that it was impossible to be violent against cars when asked about the attacks on the electric vehicle company.

“I think it’s important that we recognize that violence is something that you commit against a human being,” Lee told independent reporter Nick Ballasy. So while I have no opinion on the actions that are going on, I actually haven’t even been following that much, but let’s be precise with our language. Violence is against human beings.”

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Lee then accused Trump of using “violent rhetoric,” avoiding any direct condemnation of the attacks on Tesla owners, many of which are caught by cameras on the electric vehicles.

“I think that Trump’s and the administration’s rhetoric has been incredible,” Lee claimed. “I think about the rhetoric a lot around trans folks, around immigrant populations, around black and brown people, who we’ve seen so many people because of the rhetoric from the administration, because of the rhetoric from the right, we’re seeing American citizens being picked up.”

“We’re seeing a lot of profiling that’s happening, and I think that that’s incredibly dangerous. And again, those are being perpetrated against people,” Lee continued. “So I think it’s important that we be clear, that we recognize what these policies are actually doing, and also that we recognize the difference between the frustration of people that is maybe organic, but also the language that’s coming from people who are in power. Donald Trump’s in power and he’s abusing that and it’s going to harm people and it has already.”

One Tesla vandal was also charged with fire-bombing the Republican Party of New Mexico’s headquarters. Attorney General Pam Bondi described the attacks on Tesla as “nothing short of domestic terrorism” in a March 18 Justice Department release.

Other times, Tesla chargers have been subjected to arson attacks, while one participant in an anti-Tesla protest allegedly struck a Trump supporter with his car. A former federal employee and his wife, who worked with an environmental non-profit, were arrested for vandalizing Teslas near Capitol Hill.

In Minneapolis, an aide to Democratic Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota did not face charges and instead was granted pre-trial diversion for vandalizing Teslas.