Musk favorite Edward "Big Balls" Coristine resigns from DOGE Tesla has struggled like never before in recent years. Selling fewer cars in 2024 than in 2023 marked its first annual fall in more than a decade. In Europe, sales have dropped for a fifth consecutive month; US sales are also down this year; and Tesla's top market of China saw sales decline 15% in May. Tesla's year-to-date share price Musk might be blaming the wrong person for Tesla's failing fortunes. It's no secret that his political actions and (former) closeness to Donald Trump impacted the company's sales, especially in Europe. There have been several protests against the auto giant, including a Tesla dealership in Rome being set on fire on March 31, destroying 17 cars. Musk's brief, very public falling out with Trump earlier this month didn't do his companies any favors. The president threatened to terminate Musk's governmental subsidies and contracts, crashing Tesla's share price by 14% and wiping around $152 billion off its valuation. Earlier this month, Milan Kovac, who had been head of Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot team, left the company. Bloomberg News also reported that Jenna Ferrua, Tesla's director of HR for North America, is no longer with the firm either.