Tesla released some terrible news about sales this morning, but then a funny thing happened: after an initial crash, its stock started to rise significantly.

Why? Well, it seems a lot like it has to do with a Politico story reporting, per three unnamed insiders, that president Donald Trump had been telling confidantes of Musk's upcoming departure in a few months — purportedly to focus on his many businesses, and not because he can't get security clearance due to drug use.

Though both the White House and Musk himself have spun the reporting as "garbage" and "fake news," the writing was nevertheless on the wall. By the time the markets closed, Tesla was trading for about $282 a share, in a 5.3 percent increase from the $254 price per share it held when markets opened this morning.

The stock jump is all the more telling in context, considering that just 48 hours ago, Musk's electric vehicle company was trading at $259 per share — right after the multi-hyphenate himself admitted that his government work was hurting Tesla's stock price.

Just a few weeks ago, Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said in a note to investors that Musk needed to "change the narrative" to save his EV company. Its brand image, the longtime Tesla bull wrote, was suffering from a "tornado crisis" due to massive backlash against the billionaire's draconian politicking — and the only way out of it was to "formally announce Musk is going to balance DOGE and being Tesla CEO."

Obviously, Musk isn't exactly following that advice by insisting that Politico's reporting, which was later corroborated by NBC, is somehow false. Regardless, the markets have spoken — and it seems like even they think he's full of crap.

For months now, Tesla has been shaken not only by anti-Musk protests, but also by investor anxiety about whether or not the company's figurehead is asleep at the wheel.

In an obvious reference to DOGE's cruel attempt at getting government employees to justify their jobs, Tesla investor and celebrity photographer Jerry Avenaim jokingly tweeted, "Please share five things you did for Tesla shareholders this week."

"Or are you working remotely?" Avenaim continued. "Asking for all of us."

Is Musk gonna get his eye back on the ball after all? Or will he dig his heels in for more culture warring?

It's impossible to tell right now, but Tesla shareholders may be in for a nasty surprise in the morning: after a White House event announcing draconian new tariffs, Tesla's stock is again getting hammered in after-hours trading.

More on Tesla: Musk Says Government Will "Go After" Tesla Critics

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Tesla Stock Is Soaring for the Funniest Possible Reason