Trumps seeks to bolster Tesla by turning White House into car showroom

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00:00A Tesla takeover on the South Lawn of the White House.

00:04A total of five vehicles from the carmaker, on display for US President Donald Trump to

00:09inspect personally, under the watchful eye of his advisor slash Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

00:16Trump quickly slammed the takeover protest movement that has seen demonstrations and

00:19vandalism grip Tesla facilities.

00:22Anger spilling over in response to Musk's controversial role as government efficiency

00:26czar, as well as numerous questionable comments and gestures evoking Nazi symbolism in the

00:32past few months.

00:50Trump later took to his Truth Social platform posting that he planned to buy a Tesla of

00:54his own.

00:56Tuesday's events have sparked backlash with some critics accusing the president of violating

01:00federal ethics rules.

01:02Reacting to the Tesla showcase, Senator Chris Murphy said just because the corruption plays

01:07out in public doesn't mean it's not corruption.

01:10Others have compared it to a government bailout of sorts amid the carmaker's sale slump.

01:16It's not the first time Trump has been accused of misusing his presidential platform.

01:20During his first term, the leader and his daughter Ivanka Trump came under fire for

01:25posing with cans of Goya beans.

01:27The photo op came after the company's CEO lauded Trump.

01:31Meanwhile the president continues to cash in on his online store.

01:34His merchandising operation moved into overdrive between election day and his inauguration

01:39in January, launching at least 168 new products.

01:44The Trump organization has made an ethics pledge that disassociates the leader from

01:48the store's day-to-day management, but its sales are still putting money directly into

01:53the president's pockets.

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