Musk vs. Trump: Dispute escalates – Musk drops 'Epstein bomb'
The public dispute between Elon Musk and Donald Trump is escalating. In a tweet on Thursday, the Tesla CEO claimed that Trump was mentioned in the files of sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The US president fired back on his Truth Social platform. Musk had already sharply criticized Trump's planned 'big, beautiful bill' tax law in recent days.
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Yahoo
14 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Elon Musk's feud with Donald Trump is hugely damaging to Tesla but don't expect any action from the board
How should a corporate board respond to a CEO publicly insulting and shaming a sitting president? It's not a question that most need to consider, since few chief executives dare to directly criticize the White House. When CEOs do speak out against a federal directive, their messages are usually delivered behind closed doors, or in a collective open letter. But this week, Elon Musk changed all that and forced the issue in a prolonged public spat with Donald Trump. The pair had a much-anticipated falling out over Trump's budget, also referred to as the 'big beautiful bill,' on Thursday, which quickly got personal. Musk asked his social media followers if it was time to create a new political party, said that Trump's tariffs would cause a recession, and even claimed that Trump's name was in government documents about Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sexual offender. 'That is the real reason they have not been made public,' Musk wrote. The feud has already been costly for Musk and his many businesses, including Tesla. The automaker's shares took a tumble as the back-and-forth took over the news cycle, dropping 14% in on Thursday, and costing shareholders $150 billion. Now analysts warn that feuding with Trump could cost Tesla billions, considering that Trump could repeal electric vehicle tax credits and other measures that have boosted Tesla's earnings. The company could also face increasing regulatory obstacles around its autonomous driving vehicles, the technology that is meant to drive Tesla's future and has been cited by stock watchers as a reason for the stock's sustained eye-popping performance. Tesla bull and Wedbush analyst Dan Ives seemed to speak for investors early on Friday when he wrote in a research note: 'This needs to calm down.' At a regular company, there's a solid chance that the events of the last few days would spur a board to dismiss a CEO. But will the Tesla board fire Musk to protect public shareholders from potential damages? 'They should,' Charles Elson, founding director of the Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance at the University of Delaware, told Fortune. 'But they won't.' The Trump-Musk spat is just the latest in a series of events that have forced the question of what role Tesla's board actually plays in the company. 'Over the years, Musk's behavior has become more outrageous,' says Elson. 'The board's lack of response makes you wonder, 'Who are these people? Why are they there?'' It has long faced criticisms for being too close to Musk, and therefore willing to overlook numerous management issues. For instance, it famously approved Musk's much-disputed 2018 pay package for $56 billion, and has silently witnessed a year of high-profile divisive behavior from the chief executive that has led to public protests and customers distancing themselves from the company. And recent allegations about Musk's drug use echo reports that have surfaced in the past without putting Musk's role at risk. There are a few contributing factors as to why that is. Musk is a controlling shareholder in Tesla, where he holds 22% of the voting power, making it extra challenging for board members to have the votes needed to force him out. The board is also in a tough position in that firing Musk could tank the stock, considering that his name is so closely associated with the company. Many directors also have particularly close ties to Musk. That includes his brother Kimbal Musk, an entrepreneur and restaurant owner, and Joe Gebbia, a cofounder of Airbnb and a friend of Musk's. There are no car industry or green energy CEOs in the group, as one might expect at a typical EV company. The directors are also paid very well. This year, a Delaware court ordered the board to give back more than $900 billion in pay after finding it had paid itself too handsomely. Robyn Denholm, Tesla board chair since 2018, earned $600 million, far more than people with the same position at other companies. The court found 'the compensation was so significant, it made it really almost impossible for them to be independent directors,' says Elson. 'It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends on his not understanding it,' says Nell Minow, a corporate governance expert, quoting Upton Sinclair. 'That's this board.' To be sure, this year, there were signs earlier this year that Tesla's directors were taking more control over the company's governance. Last month, the Wall Street Journal reported last month that the board had begun looking for a successor and selected a search firm to assist them. It also reported that the board had met with Trump weeks before he announced he would be spending less time at the White House. It seemed that between the backlash against Tesla provoked by Musk's focus on Washington, and Tesla's shrinking share price, finally pushed the board to act. But the board denied the report outright, with Denholm calling it 'absolutely false.' Even considering his own predilection for conflict, Elon Musk's latest squabble is in a category of its own. But board experts agree that to expect action from the Tesla board is misguided. 'There have been so many 'Now the board has to do something moments,' and they have failed every time,' says Minow. 'I no longer feel that there is such a thing as 'Now they have to do something.'' There are technically ways that shareholders could move the needle if they wanted Musk out. They could vote directors off the board via shareholder proxy votes, and hope that new directors would fire Musk. Or they could try to sue the board for not kicking Musk to the curb when he put the brand at risk and split his focus between Washington and Tesla. But a shareholder who wanted to do that would need to own up to a 3% stake in the company, points out Ann Lipton, associate dean for faculty research at Tulane University's Law School, and governance laws make it all but impossible to do. 'No shareholder is going to be able to show that this board is acting in bad faith by failing to replace Musk as CEO, which is really the level that they'd have to show,' she said. It's still theoretically possible that a Tesla board director could try to bring about change by suggesting Musk go. But they would have to make peace with potentially losing their roles, says Elson. 'They would say, 'Look, I will vote to move him along. And if I lose, I leave. I can't do this anymore,'' says Elson. Whether they'll do that depends on whether they're people of principle, he added, or 'people of convenience.''We'll have to see,' he said. 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Yahoo
20 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How to Stop Missing Big Gains and Start Beating the Market Now
Have you ever read a headline that made you want to throw your phone across the room? Not out of anger, but frustration for your own bad investing decisions? You know the headlines I mean. 'NVIDIA up 3,000% since 2019…''Palantir up 65% in 2025…' InvestorPlace - Stock Market News, Stock Advice & Trading Tips And all you can think is: 'I saw that. I that. Louis told me about it. Why didn't I act? I missed it!' We've all been there. You hear about a new megatrend… or maybe a little-known company with a big new technological innovation… or a bold prediction about a company or sector… And you think, 'Interesting. I'll keep an eye on it and see if I find anything I like to buy.' Then life happens. The market goes through its gyrations, and things look more unsteady. And six months later, that 'little idea' has pushed select stocks skyward and made investors rich… and you never acted. I bet many of you had one of those moments last week with quantum computing stocks. Over the past week or so, a slew of headlines like the following one appeared about IonQ Inc. (IONQ). And this one about D-Wave Quantum Inc. (QBTS): In case you missed it, even with Friday's down day, QBTS and IONQ were up 56% and 31%, respectively, last week. Quantum computing and both companies started hitting investors' radars in late 2021 and early 2022. That's when a combination of scientific breakthroughs, increased corporate investment and early commercialization started making it impossible to ignore quantum computing. And that's when IONQ and QBTS went public. Yet most of us did nothing about it. But here's the good news: The market always gives you another shot. I gave my paid members another shot on quantum earlier this year when I released two special reports focused on quantum computing and investments to make – including these two stocks. Since publishing my second report on March 13, IONQ and QBTS are up 115% and 204%, respectively. And while quantum stocks are now overheated – I'm still long on the technology, but not necessarily the stocks at the moment – I believe a different 'next shot' is unfolding right now. Just because the headlines scream about a trend or set of stocks, that shouldn't drive your investing decisions. Think of the recent market sell-off after President Donald Trump's Liberation Day press conference. The market plunged, and many investors sold to get out of the market's downward path. Indeed, investors did what they always do when the headlines become bearish. They chase the safety of the crowd. Selling low. Waiting for permission from the media to feel bullish again. Or worse, they load up on whatever trend or stock had the biggest bounce … yesterday. This is a bias called crowd-seeking. It's been hardcoded into us for tens of thousands of years. Imagine you and your hunter-gatherer tribe are out and about… moving to a place with more freshwater. On your way, you see three dozen terrified members of your neighboring tribe running for their lives in a human stampede. Your instincts will tell you to run as fast as you can. There's a good reason three dozen people are running for their lives, and it doesn't matter if you can't see any danger… you just know it's time to run. This reason – survival – is the core reason why humans seek crowds. To this day, we know having your own crowd – your family, friends, and coworkers – leads to longer, better lives. But this instinct won't help make you rich in the stock market. My Stock Grader quantitative system doesn't read the news. It doesn't care who is president. It doesn't get scared on down days or too excited on up days. It just scans more than 6,000 stocks every week… analyzes fundamentals… tracks price action… investigates big money buying… and seeks out the stocks with the highest probability of explosive, near-term gains. That's how I've been able to identify over 175 stocks that went on to make 1,000%+ gains. Let's go back to a similar down-market moment… In 2022, the S&P 500 was in a bear market. Meanwhile, Stock Grader was weeding through the thousands of options to identify which stocks were going to be the rare winners. And one of the stocks it flagged was Vista Energy (VIST). At the time, VIST was a little-known Latin American oil and gas company. But my Stock Grader gave it an 'A' rating based on strong earnings growth, rising cash flow, and a surge in institutional buying. I did my own deep dive… found the stock to my liking… and recommended it to my Accelerated Profits readers in February 2022. VIST went on to post a 117% gain in under three months while the broader market kept falling. And now… in the middle of what feels like political and economic chaos, my system is doing what it always does – finding winners. Many of these winners are popping up because President Trump's bold new economic agenda – which I call '' – is sending shockwaves through the market. Unfortunately, too many investors are only seeing the fear on the surface. But under the surface, my system and I are tracking: A rare divergence in consumer spending vs. sentiment A sudden uptick in institutional accumulation And massive 'money rotation' into unloved sectors primed to surge under new policies This isn't just a gut feeling or sentiment driven by press conferences or screaming headlines. It's data. And the data is saying: It's time to act. Too many investors will likely miss this moment because they let emotions lead. They're waiting. Waiting for the all-clear or listening to fear-driven headlines. But here is what I see… The stocks with the best fundamentals are already rising—quietly, efficiently, and predictably. These are the stocks that will lead the charge when Trump's full economic plan rolls out over the next 12 months. You just have to know where to look. That's why I walked viewers through everything during my free —including: Why this new economic era is nothing like the past four years The three sectors positioned for a breakout under Trump's three-part Liberation agenda And the name of my #1 stock pick for the next 90 days, completely free Now, a repeat of this special presentation is still available to watch – but only for a little while. What's more, I'll detail how I plan to generate repeatable payouts—$2,500, $4,800, even $45,000 or more in cash—again and again, using one of the most battle-tested tools in the history of American investing. The markets are wild. Your emotions are loud. But profits belong to the calm, the rational, and the system-driven. . Sincerely, Louis Navellier Editor, Market 360 The Editor hereby discloses that as of the date of this email, the Editor, directly or indirectly, owns the following securities that are the subject of the commentary, analysis, opinions, advice, or recommendations in, or which are otherwise mentioned in, the essay set forth below: IonQ Inc. () The post How to Stop Missing Big Gains and Start Beating the Market Now appeared first on InvestorPlace.
Fox News
24 minutes ago
- Fox News
Chinese bioterror suspects' arrests signal communist country plotting 'something worse' than COVID: expert
After the pattern of recent covert communist Chinese infiltrations of the U.S. continued with the arrest of two suspected "bioterrorists" in Michigan this week, one expert said it's time to sever relations with China completely. "The only way to stop this is to sever relations with China," attorney and Chinese Communist Party expert Gordon Chang told Fox News Digital. "And I know people think that's drastic, but we are being overwhelmed, and we are going to get hit. And we are going to get hit really hard. Not just with COVID, not just with fentanyl, but perhaps with something worse." Chang was responding to recent news of Chinese nationals Yunqing Jian, 33, and her boyfriend Zunyong Liu, 34, who, over a two-year period, were allegedly smuggling Fusarium graminearum into the U.S. and studying it in labs. Jian was a post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Michigan, whose research was funded in part by the People's Republic of China. Fusarium graminearum is a toxic fungus that causes a crop-killing "head blight," a disease of wheat, barley, maize and rice that "is responsible for billions of dollars in economic losses worldwide each year," according to the Department of Justice. It is also toxic to humans, and can cause vomiting, liver damage and "reproductive defects in humans and livestock." "This couple should be sent to Guantánamo," Chang said. "This Chinese government has declared a 'People's War' on us." A "People's War" is a military strategy developed by brutal former Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong, who died in 1976, known for killing tens of millions of Chinese people via starvation and political persecution. Such a war calls for a protracted military and political onslaught meant to exhaust the enemy. Jian and Liu were arrested earlier this week and charged with conspiracy, smuggling goods into the U.S., false statements and visa fraud. "We're Americans, so we think we're entitled to ignore the propaganda of hostile regimes," Chang said. "But for a communist party, [a People's War] has great resonance, and what they're doing with their strident anti-Americanism is creating a justification to strike our country." "This means, for example, that this couple should be sent to Guantánamo," he said. "This was an attack on the United States at a time when China thought it was at war with us." Since the 2019 People's War decree referenced by Chang, a laundry list of Chinese and Chinese-aligned infiltrators have been caught red-handed in the U.S., especially at American universities. Here's a look back at some of those instances: In 2020, two Chinese nationals who were graduate students at the University of Michigan pleaded guilty to charges stemming from a breach at a Naval air station in Key West, Florida, where they were caught illegally entering and photographing defense infrastructure. Charles Lieber is not a Chinese national, but was convicted in 2021 of making false statements to authorities and failing to report income from his work with China's Wuhan University of Technology. He also had a contract with China's Thousand Talents Program, which "incentivize [their] members to steal foreign technologies needed to advance China's national, military, and economic goals," according to the FBI. He was sentenced to time served, which was two days in prison, and two years of supervised release with six months of home confinement. He also paid various fines and restitution of more than $88,000. In 2022, Ji Chaoqun, a Chinese national who had been a student at the Illinois Institute of Technology, was convicted after attempting to commit espionage and theft of trade secrets. Chaoqun gathered information from American defense contractors and engineers as part of a plot by high-level Chinese intelligence officials to glean information about U.S. technology advancements. He was sentenced to eight years in prison. In 2024, the FBI filed charges against five Chinese nationals, all students at the University of Michigan, after they were caught allegedly photographing a joint American-Taiwanese training exercise at Camp Grayling, a National Guard training facility in Michigan. Their studies were part of a joint program with Shanghai-based Jiao Tong University. Late last year, a University of Minnesota student and Chinese national named Fengyun Shi was convicted in federal court for illegally taking photos of Norfolk, Virginia, naval bases using a drone. He was sentenced to six months in jail and then deported in May of this year. "We can lose our country, even though we're the far stronger nation, because we are not defending ourselves with the vigor and determination that is necessary," Chang told Fox News Digital. Chang also noted that in 2020, Americans in all 50 states received seeds from China unsolicited, which he said "was an attempt to plant invasive species" in the U.S. He also noted that this year, Chinese online retailer Temu did the same. "Imagine walking into your local grocery store and seeing empty shelves where bread, cereal, and even pet food used to be," Jason Pack, a former FBI supervisory special agent, told Fox News Digital. "Prices spike. Supply chains slow down. All because a foreign actor deliberately targeted the crops that keep America fed. That may sound far-fetched, but it's exactly the kind of scenario that becomes possible when someone brings a dangerous agricultural pathogen into the United States. "It doesn't take a bomb to disrupt an economy. It takes a biological agent like Fusarium graminearum introduced into the wrong place at the wrong time. Food prices rise. Livestock suffer. Exports stop. The economic ripple effects are enormous."
