Harris says Biden made mistake not inviting Musk to electric vehicle summit

Former Vice president Kamala Harris said her former boss, former President Joe Biden, made a “huge mistake” by not inviting Tesla CEO Elon Musk to a 2021 White House event about electric cars.

In August 2021, Biden hosted an electric vehicle event at the White House with executives from General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, but Musk was not invited, despite Tesla being the country’s leading electric vehicle manufacturer.

“I write in the book that I thought it was a big mistake not to invite Elon Musk when we did a big EV event,” Harris told Fortune editor-in-chief Alison Shontel on Tuesday at the Most Powerful Women Summit in Washington, D.C., referring to her memoir “107 Days,” in which she criticized Biden for initially running for re-election despite his health struggles.

“I mean, here is the premier American manufacturer of exceptional innovation in this space,” Harris said of Musk, who is also SpaceX CEO.

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Musk’s snub was widely seen as an attempt to support the United Auto Workers and organized labor in general, since Tesla’s factories are not unionized. Harris wrote in her book that she thought Biden was “sending a message about Musk’s anti-union stance” but thought dismissing him as the top player in the field “simply doesn’t make sense.”

Then-White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the event included “the three largest UAW employers,” stressing that Tesla workers are not unionized.

When asked if Musk’s snub was punishment for his workers not unionizing, Psaki told reporters: “I’ll let you come to your own conclusion.”

The Biden administration has defended inviting only these automakers, calling them key partners in the president’s quest for union jobs.

Elon Musk’s snub was widely seen as an attempt to support the UAW and organized labor in general. (Reuters/Nathan Howard)

Presidents must “put political loyalties aside” when it comes to recognizing technological innovation, Harris said.

“So, I thought this was a mistake, and I don’t know Elon Musk, but I have to assume this was something that hurt him deeply and had an impact on his perspective,” she said.

Musk appeared to take offense after not being invited to the event, as he directed several jabs at Biden.

“Yes, it seems strange that Tesla wasn’t invited,” Musk wrote at the time on social media.

A month later, he said the Biden administration appeared to be “controlled by unions” and was not “the friendliest administration.”

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Former President Joe Biden hosted an electric vehicle event at the White House in 2021 with executives from General Motors, Ford and Stellantis, but Elon Musk was not invited. (AP)

After Musk learned that Tesla would not be invited, administration officials issued an apology, according to the Wall Street Journal. Biden’s aides later tried to calm things down, but tensions remained.

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Harris’ comments on Tuesday mirrored a passage from her new book in which she wrote that the Biden administration’s move not to include Tesla was a mistake and appeared to alienate Musk, who later became a top financial backer of current President Donald Trump.

“Musk has never forgiven that,” she wrote.

Musk later endorsed Trump in the 2024 election and contributed approximately $300 million to Republican campaign efforts.