[palmer]

he has already proven that he can build a better mouse trap

Not really. He has proven he can take the concept of an economical alternative to gas transportation and make it less economical than gasoline. His electric cars use vast amounts of fossil fuel to manufacture and to run, and we taxpayers subsidize them as if they are somehow better. But they are not.

[MrsEmmaPeel]

His electric cars use vast amounts of fossil fuel to manufacture and to run,
No more fossil fuel needed by Tesla than conventional car manufacturers. and we taxpayers subsidize them as if they are somehow better.
There is a tax credit given to the buyer, (not the seller) who is purchasing an electric vehicle (including golf carts) that ceases July next year. The Government loans to Tesla have already been paid back.

If you want to play the carbon footprint game of electricity vs gas, then you must add in ALL the steps along the process in the gas refinery and compare that against ALL the possible steps in the process of electrical creation.

For me, personally, as our government prevents us from drilling our own oil, and as we are locked in to purchase oil from terrorist supporting nations, I'd rather have a vehicle where I am no longer supporting terrorism.

A really good expose on the myths about the electric car (in particular Tesla) -- which addresses the carbon print argument can be found here:
Fully Charged Episode