The Truth About The Trump Administration Purchasing $400M Worth Of “Armored Cybertrucks”

Did you hear?

The TRUMP Administration is suddenly purchasing $400 Million worth of Elon Musk’s Cybertrucks!

See?

It was all just one big grift all along….and now the truth is coming out!  Elon Musk doesn’t care about you or fraud, waste and abuse….he just wanted those big fat Government contracts!  And now he got one for $400 Million.

See?  We told you all along Trump and Musk are corrupt!

PAUSE.

I hope you detect the sarcasm in what I just wrote, because that would be the message you would have received if you watched the incredibly dishonest Rachel Maddow show last night.

Here’s a clip:

Tonight, Rachel Maddow led her show with a hit piece against the Cybertruck & Elon, suggesting the proposed $400M for armored Teslas was an example of “self-dealing.”

Yet she conveniently left out that the procurement list was revised in Dec 2024, when Biden was President. The… pic.twitter.com/Hyu9uFrOe4

— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) February 13, 2025

Wow, that does sound bad, right?

Except….it’s not true.

It’s unclear if the dishonest reporting by Maddow was intentional or just due to laziness, but the entire report falls flat on it’s face when you realize the procurement actually happened in December 2024.

Yes, that would be under Joseph Robinette Biden.

Oops!

Elon Musk responded to a Sawyer Merritt post confirming that detail and asking Maddow:  “why the lie?”

Hey @maddow, why the lie? https://t.co/gUZax7mvef

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 13, 2025

Elon Musk later responded to Jon Favreau making the same claim as Maddow by saying “Fake News”:

Fake news

And it’s “Dark MAGA”

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 13, 2025

It’s not entirely clear on its face whether the “Fake News” and “lie” are referring to the purchase going forward and actually happening or just the fact that it was reported to be sourced by President Trump and Marco Rubio.

The latter is clearly a lie and fake, but some reports also say the procurement is not going forward anyway.

PBS reported today that, in fact, the Marco Rubio-led State Department has decided to NOT go forward with the procurement, so that would in fact by President Trump cancelling an order initially placed by Joe Biden for $400M worth of Tesla Cybertrucks:

The State Department said Thursday it is abandoning plans of purchasing $400 million worth of armored Tesla vehicles after a public document detailing federal contracts for fiscal year 2025 gained wide attention.

That expected purchase of Teslas, which was slated for September of this year, is now on hold, according to the State Department, which now says it has no plans of fulfilling the contract.

The potential federal purchase drew scrutiny since Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk is also a top White House official who has been leading the Department of Government Efficiency, a unit focused on shrinking the federal workforce and ferreting out corruption.

The document did not specify what Tesla vehicles would be purchased by U.S. officials, but Musk’s Cybertruck, with its militaristic design and stainless steel exterior, could have been an option.

After reports circulated Wednesday night of the State Department’s intent to purchase Tesla vehicles, NPR noticed that the document was edited, at 9:12 p.m., to say the federal contract is for $400 million worth of “armored electric vehicles,” but the word “Tesla” was removed.

Responding to a segment by MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow about the $400 million contract, Musk wrote on X on Wednesday night: “Hey @Maddow, why the lie?”

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The Tesla contract started in the Biden administration “to explore interest from private companies to produce armored electric vehicles,” a State Department spokesperson said on Thursday.

Tesla was the only company to express interest in the department’s request at the time.

Typically the next step would be “an official solicitation” for vehicle manufacturers to compete for the contract. But now, the solicitation is on hold, according to the State Department spokesperson.

Musk did not return a request for comment.

Will Rachel Maddow correct the record?

Will she report honestly?

I would say “tune in to find out” but you’ll have to just tune in here since I’ve heard many people report they are unable to watch her show without becoming physically ill.

But what about the larger question….would Cybertrucks be a good addition to the US fleet?

I think they would for sure:

Why Cybertrucks would be a better fit for the US
Government over their existing vehicles:

• Cybertrucks have 67% parts sourced in the U.S./ Canada while the Chevy only has 37% making it more 🇺🇸.
• Cybertruck fleet will cost MUCH less to maintain, saving tax dollars.
•… pic.twitter.com/3wecgM1Cvr

— Nic Cruz Patane (@niccruzpatane) February 12, 2025

Why Cybertrucks would be a better fit for the US
Government over their existing vehicles:

• Cybertrucks have 67% parts sourced in the U.S./ Canada while the Chevy only has 37% making it more 🇺🇸.
• Cybertruck fleet will cost MUCH less to maintain, saving tax dollars.
• Cybertruck could act as a portable power bank when needed.
• Tesla could supply portable Megapack Supercharger Stations wherever, meaning they’ll always be juiced up.
• Government vehicles spend a lot of time idling and wasting fuel.
• Without any modifications, Cybertruck comes armored from the factory. (Would need windows etc.)
• Technology and UI integration would be next level.
• They could function autonomously if needed.

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