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Fox News host Harris Faulkner invented a bizarre situation in order to ask White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt if those who vandalize Tesla’s could recieve the death penalty.
In Faulkner’s wild hypothetical, she brought up a possibility “that no one’s talking about”. The scenario sees protestors potentially being sentenced to death if they set alight a Tesla with someone’s child or pet inside.
“What happens if there’s someone in one of these cars? They blow up. That can happen. That becomes murder or worse, terrorism plus,” Faulkner said.
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The host then mentioned President Donald Trump’s recent executive order expanding the death penalty, which encourages the Department of Justice to seek the death penalty in appropriate federal cases.
“Do you think this sort of thing – and I hate to think it, people leave their children and pets in cars. I mean, you don’t know. This is deadly, dangerous stuff these liberal protesters are playing with,” the Fox News host said.
Nodding along, Leavitt said the president “condemns” the violence and is determined to punish those committing the acts against Tesla.
“He will ensure that the harshest penalties are pursued for those who are engaging in this vicious violence that we have seen targeted at this American company,” Leavitt told Faulkner.
Teslas have been targeted across the country, including instances of people throwing Molotov cocktails at dealerships, setting fire to Cybertrucks, and writing offensive messages across vehicles.
The recent attacks appear to be in protest of Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, wielding vast authority in the federal government despite being unelected. While the government contends that Musk is a “special government employee” and senior adviser to the president, court filings suggest he has greater authority.
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Trump and his administration have defended Musk and Tesla against the attacks, threatening to harshly prosecute those who attack Tesla.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said she would open investigations into attacks on Tesla and labeled the acts as “domestic terrorism.”
While the U.S. does have a federal death penalty, it is rarely invoked in cases. Typically is it reserved for cases in which the person accused of a crime has killed another person or multiple people.
