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Elon Musk meets with top Biden aides in Washington to discuss electric vehicle goals

Click to play video: 'Twitter users declare in poll Elon Musk should step down'
Twitter users declare in poll Elon Musk should step down
Twitter users declared in a poll put out by Twitter chief Elon Musk that he should step down from his role, with 57 per cent voting in favour of him leaving the job. Musk said when putting out the poll he would abide by its results, which saw more than half of the platform's 17.5 million users responding to the question. The poll came the same day the company said it would prohibit accounts being used or created to promote accounts on other social media platforms such as Facebook or Mastodon – Dec 19, 2022

Tesla CEO Elon Musk and a pair of top aides to President Joe Biden met in Washington on Friday to discuss the electric vehicle industry and the broader goal of electrification.

Musk and Biden did not meet, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said.

The two haven’t had the smoothest of relationships, with Biden, a big supporter of labor unions, disappointed by Musk’s refusal to allow them into his factories.

White House aides Mitch Landrieu and John Podesta sat down with the Tesla chief — who also owns Twitter and SpaceX — at Tesla’s office in downtown Washington to discuss shared goals around electrification.

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Their discussion touched on how infrastructure and climate legislation that Biden signed into law last year can help boost the production of electric vehicles and charging stations, and encourage more people to switch from gas-fueled to electric-powered vehicles and to choose more electric appliances, like heat pumps and stoves. Rebates and tax credits are available to encourage that shift.

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Elon Musk booed during surprise appearance at Dave Chappelle show

Landrieu oversees federal spending on infrastructure, which included financial help for the electric vehicle industry. Podesta is the president’s point man on spending on Biden’s climate and clean energy initiatives.

Asked whether the meeting signaled a new phase in White House relations with Musk, Jean-Pierre said it “says a lot” about how Biden sees the importance of both pieces of legislation.

“I think it’s important that his team, senior members of his team, had a meeting with Elon Musk,” she said.

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