Squinting in the sun with Elon Musk, Trump stood next to five Tesla vehicles, holding a piece of paper with handwritten notes about their features and costs. Trump said he would purchase a car himself at full price.

Discontent with Elon Musk has spurred a nationwide protest movement that aims to cut off the profits for the billionaire’s lucrative car business, EV maker Tesla. Now, Trump-aligned lawmakers are lobbying for the Justice Department to go after protesters in what seems like a blatantly oligarchic weaponization of the nation’s justice system.