Elon Musk attacked the Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standard on Wednesday, describing it as a "scam" that "has been weaponized by phony social justice warriors."
He also accused S&P Global Ratings — the rating division of S&P Global — of losing its integrity.
What Happened: In a Wednesday Tweet, Musk lamented that major fossil fuel producer Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM) "is rated top ten in world for environment, social & governance by S&P 500, while Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) didn't make the list." He added:
"ESG is a scam. It has been weaponized by phony social justice warriors."
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Musk's remarks follow S&P Global Ratings announcing changes to its ranking on Tuesday resulting in an annual rebalancing that excluded both Tesla and Berkshire Hathway Inc. (NYSE: BRK-A).
The announcement noted the automaker was pushed out of the ranking due to "a decline in criteria level scores related to Tesla’s (lack of) low carbon strategy and codes of business conduct" as well as "media and stakeholder analysis ... claims of racial discrimination and poor working conditions" and how the company handled investigations into multiple deaths and injuries linked to its autopilot software.
In a subsequent tweet, Musk wrote that he used to vote for Democrats because theirs was the party linked to more kindness. Still, he claims that "they have become the party of division & hate, so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican."
He added: "Now, watch their dirty tricks campaign against me unfold."
TSLA Price Action: While establishing a clear causal link may be hard, Tesla's stock does not appear to have taken the exclusion from the index kindly.
The stock was down 7.14% at $707.25 Wednesday afternoon, according to Benzinga Pro.
Photo courtesy of Tesla.
