As a shareholder, I'm very concerned about Elon's involvement in the Trump admin. It appears Elon's participation in Trump's advisory councils is being seen by some as lending credibility to and legitimizing the Trump admin. While we don't know the exact numbers, it's clearly aggravating and alienating some of Tesla's core customers, even to the point of some cancelling reservations.
While the exact number of people cancelling reservations might not be that high (or it might be, we just don't know), I'm more concerned about the loss of affinity toward the Tesla brand by some of Tesla's core constituency if Elon continues to be involved in Trump's advisory councils. This loss of affinity is extremely difficult to quantify, but could have a deep impact if the trend continues.
Is it really essential that Elon stay officially involved in Trump's admin via advisory councils? Or can Elon accomplish most of his objectives via private lobbying or even funding (or even starting) a private lobbying organization.
If Elon resigns from the advisory councils, perhaps Elon can avoid alienating an increasing number of Tesla's core customers. And further, I don't see much negative if Elon resigns. Trump does not have much leverage over Tesla, since Tesla's cars are manufactured in the U.S. and Trump is not able to place tariffs on Tesla's cars. Trump could possibly remove the federal tax credit for EVs, but that would hurt competitors more than it will Tesla. Trump could possibly remove solar subsidies (ITC) but solar revenue isn't a major revenue generator for Tesla, especially after Model 3 ramps, and Tesla will still have the rest of the world as a market for its solar products.
Now, I know it's difficult to have an online discussion about politics without some person or persons interfering with pushing political beliefs. So, if you're going to reply to this or in this thread, please do not push political views. Rather, only contribute if you have something substantial to share that will add value to the discussion.