Elon Musk reacts to protest sign amid global backlash over Trump ties

Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded with humour to a protester’s sign reading "Send Musk to Mars" amid growing demonstrations against his leadership and ties to Donald Trump.
The sign, spotted during global Tesla protests, prompted Musk to reply on X: "I'm trying, I'm trying 😂😂," and the post quickly went viral.
The protests, which have erupted across the United States, Canada, and Europe, formed part of a coordinated movement dubbed "World Day Against Elon Musk." Demonstrators gathered outside Tesla outlets and, in London, even smashed a Tesla vehicle to symbolise their anger, as reported by several news agencies.
Much of the outrage centres around Musk’s role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the Trump administration and his perceived influence over policy.
It all started when X user @cb_doge (DogeDesigner), a frequent Musk supporter, posted an image of the viral sign and captioned it: "Who exactly are they yelling at to send Musk to Mars? Pretty sure the only guy building a rocket to Mars… is Musk himself."

Musk joined the thread with his now widely shared response:
"I'm trying, I'm trying 😂😂"
He later added to the playful exchange by posting an anime-style Ghibli picture of himself and his son X, who was seen wearing a T-shirt that read:
"Occupy Mars"

DogeDesigner followed up with another tweet: "Mars will be called the 'New World’.” For which elon musk replied with a "Yes".

The posts prompted a wave of reactions from X users. One wrote: “@elonmusk yeah we will see when it happens… until then I'm only slightly impressed.”

Another added: “That's like saying. 'Make all Musks dreams come true.' Lol, not the burn they think it is.”

A third user quipped: “Change the name of the planet Mars to Musk. Soon, he'll build a colony on a planet under his name.”

Despite plunging Tesla stock prices and declining sales, Musk has continued to push ambitious goals for Mars colonisation. He recently said SpaceX aims to launch its Starship rocket carrying Optimus humanoid robots to Mars by the end of 2026 — a bold leap toward interplanetary settlement.
But back on Earth, the political backlash shows no signs of abating. Protesters have accused Musk of hypocrisy and urged him to sever ties with the Trump administration — calls he has frequently mocked online, calling the demonstrators "ignorant" or “influenced by others.”