State Department Contract Document Edited to Remove 'Tesla' After Media Scrutiny

A State Department procurement document was edited Wednesday night to remove the name "Tesla" after media outlets highlighted a forecasted $400 million contract for the company led by Elon Musk, who is currently working to gut federal contracts at the U.S. Education Department and other government agencies.

An initial version of the State Department document was timestamped December 23, 2024—over a month after President Donald Trump's election victory and while former President Joe Biden was still in the White House.

NPR reported that the document was edited Wednesday night after several news outlets focused in on the inclusion of Tesla.

The original document listed an order for $400 million of "armored Tesla"; the altered version details a forecasted contract for "armored electric vehicles."

Drop Site's Ryan Grim, who first spotlighted the State Department document, noted that the electric vehicle order is "forecast to be the largest contract delivered by the State Department in 2025."

NPR noted that "the document does not specify what Tesla vehicles will be purchased by U.S. officials, but Musk's Cybertruck, with its militaristic design and stainless steel exterior, could be an option."

"This is what the tech oligarchy looks like," said tech writer Brian Merchant in response to news of the forecasted contract, which is set to be awarded later this year.

Musk claimed to be unaware of the contract, writing on his social media platform that "no one mentioned it to me, at least."

Tesla is one of several Musk-led companies that have benefited from around $13 billion in federal contracts over the past five years.

The revelation that Tesla is set to receive another lucrative federal deal comes as Musk—who spent hundreds of millions of dollars to help elect Trump—and his lieutenants are rampaging through federal agencies and ripping up contracts at various departments, while also taking aim at critical government programs.

ProPublica reported earlier this week that "the Trump administration has terminated more than $900 million in Education Department contracts, taking away a key source of data on the quality and performance of the nation's schools."

"The cuts were made at the behest of Elon Musk's cost-cutting crew, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and were disclosed on X, the social media platform Musk owns, shortly after ProPublica posed questions to U.S. Department of Education staff about the decision to decimate the agency's research and statistics arm, the Institute of Education Sciences," the investigative outlet noted.