United States President Joe Biden wants half of all cars built to be electric by 2030. He wants the country to be the leading maker of electric cars.
The commander in chief surrounded himself with top automotive executives to talk about the program Thursday.
Curiously, Tesla -- undoubtedly the leading manufacturer of American electric vehicles -- was not represented in a summit hosted by the White House.
Tesla chief executive officer Elon Musk said on Twitter that his company was not invited to the event. "Yeah, seems odd that Tesla wasn't invited," he said, according to Business Insider.
The Palo Alto, California-based company has been responsible for around 75% of electric-vehicle sales in the U.S. over the past three years, Insider said.
Executives from General Motor, Ford, and Stellantis stood alongside Biden as he outlined an executive order that calls for 50% of all American car sales to be zero-emission vehicles by 2030.
Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary, suggested Tesla's lack of close relations with the United Auto Workers (UAW) union was a factor in its exclusion from the electric vehicle summit.
Musk has been a pace-setter in the automotive industry, and Tesla last month disclosed its first-ever quarterly profit that topped the $1 billion mark on record orders.
Will The White House Exclude Tesla, The Most American Made EV, From Its EV Event? https://t.co/loRazecbsp — CleanTechnica (@cleantechnica) August 5, 2021
Tesla sells more electric cars than anyone in the U.S. Between 2015 and 2020, there were more than 974,000 all-battery powered cars sold in America. Approximately, 730,000 of those are Teslas.
In June, Tesla surpassed Ford to become the "most American-built" car, according to an index report by Cars.com.
Musk has been vocal against moves to unionize Tesla workers at its car facility in Fremont, California, over the last few years.
In March, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ordered the billionaire to remove a 2018 Twitter comment and reinstate an employee terminated for labor group efforts.
Asked whether the snub was tied to Tesla's non-union stance, Psaki said the invited companies are the "three largest key players" of the UAW. "So I will let you draw your own conclusion," she said.
