On Ford Motor Co.'s earnings call last week, CEO Jim Hackett said this: "Safety is of the utmost concern in a pandemic; yours, your loved ones and the people you work with. The communities you live in and amazingly all other humans you interact with, their safety guarantees your safety."
Elon Musk had a much different message on Tesla's earnings call the next day: "This is fascist. This isn't democratic. This isn't freedom. Give people back their goddamn freedom."
Musk: People need freedom
The Tesla CEO, who in March called concerns over the coronavirus "dumb" and had to be ordered by county officials to close the company's California plant after claiming it to be an essential business, unloaded on states requiring people to remain in their homes to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The crisis prevented Tesla from achieving a first-quarter delivery record, though it didn't stop the company from posting a third consecutive profit.
The same day, Musk echoed President Donald Trump's recent all-caps calls to "LIBERATE" Michigan, Minnesota and Virginia, tweeting, "FREE AMERICA NOW."
Cuban: Part of restart council
Musk's ranting won him praise from many Tesla acolytes and Trump supporters. But it generated backlash from doctors and some customers, including the mother of pop singer Ariana Grande. Joan Grande tweeted that Musk was "irresponsible" and "a disgrace," adding that she would get rid of her Teslas.
Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks and a tech billionaire himself, pushed back at Musk in an interview on Fox News.
"Anything that negatively affects Tesla, Elon hates — period, end of story," said Cuban, who is on a council advising Trump about restarting the U.S. economy. "I don't think he has other people's interests at heart."
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