Remember last year when an activist Delaware judge invalidated Elon Musk's compensation package at Tesla--twice--despite it having been overwhelmingly approved by stockholders--twice?

The compensation package was unconventional--he wouldn't get paid unless he delivered extraordinary results. He multiplied the value of the company by 10x. Which is shareholders approved the package--he made them extremely wealthy, and they rewarded him by making him even wealthier. He put it all on the line, performed, and the judge took it all away and gave a bunch of it to lawyers. 

The judge was, by the way, closely tied to the Biden crime family. 

JUST IN: Delaware activist judge Kathaleen McCormick declines to reinstate Elon Musk's Tesla compensation package, once again overruling the company’s board and more than 72% of its shareholders.

Instead, she ordered Tesla shareholders to pay $345 million in legal fees to… pic.twitter.com/a8dsypXpJa

— KanekoaTheGreat (@KanekoaTheGreat) December 2, 2024

Delaware, of course, is Biden territory, and Biden was engaged in a war on Elon at the same time McCormick was making adverse rulings against him. All part of the lawfare pushed by the last administration. 

1.76 BILLION shares voted in favor of Elon Musk's pay package (vs 528m against)

Judge McCormick overruled them all

Do not incorporate in Delaware pic.twitter.com/WZjKxRhv8A

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) December 3, 2024

The judge awarded attorney's fees to the lawyers who blocked Elon's pay package--which she claimed was excessive--and the numbers were staggering. 

this Delaware verdict awards the plaintiff's attorneys $17,692 per hour for suing Tesla

$345,000,000/19,499.95 hours

Judge claims it's worth it because they "litigated effectively" and "overcame hurdles". incredible pic.twitter.com/9f73q4PIdZ

— Gregg Re (@gregg_re) December 3, 2024

No wonder everybody in corporate America freaked out. If you are targeted by politicians, your entire business could be destroyed. 

Yeah, well, FAFO. Major corporations are fleeing Delaware so fast that the governor himself is squealing and looking for a way to repair the reputation of the state as the most corporate-friendly in the nation. 

It is a genuine crisis. 

Here is a list of companies that have moved their corporations out of Delaware based on recent reports and posts on X:

Tesla
SpaceX
The Boring Company
Neuralink
X Corp.
Tripadvisor
Meta
Fidelity National Financial
NewsMax
Sonoma Pharmaceuticals
Bill
Dropbox
TransPerfect

— Frank Furter (@FrankFurter420a) February 3, 2025

Somewhere around 15%-20% of Delaware's budget comes from corporate franchise taxes. For years, venture capital has pretty much-required firms they invest in to incorporate in Delaware because the state's corporate laws are well understood. It is seen as a safe haven to prevent frivolous lawsuits. 

Dropbox is also leaving Delaware. It’s happening. pic.twitter.com/SFBQ5jpo39

— Robert Anderson (@ProfRobAnderson) January 31, 2025

Now, the opposite is the case, all due to the attack on Elon Musk as part of the vendetta a single judge had against him. 

Delaware is facing a further exodus of tech companies amid reports that Meta and Dropbox are moving out of the state.

Newsweek has contacted Meta and Dropbox for comment via email.

Why It Matters

Delaware has long been considered a business-friendly state due to its corporate tax advantages, and is home to multiple large companies. However, backlash against the First State has intensified after Delaware Judge Kathaleen McCormick ruled that Tesla CEO Elon Musk's record-breaking $56 billion compensation package was excessive.

Musk, who has become increasingly influential in both the political and corporate world, urged companies to pull out of the Democratic-led state. In February 2024, he announced that SpaceX was relocating its incorporation from Delaware to Texas, following Tesla's corporate move from California to Texas in 2021.

Delaware courts deciding to go woke might just end up being the biggest case of economic seppuku in world history https://t.co/traESQslog

— Spencer Davis 🇺🇸 (@spencerdavis_tx) January 31, 2025

The scale of the disaster is incalculable. Texas and Nevada have become the preferred destination for incorporation--not just for new companies but for some of the largest corporations in the world. The uncertainty that one judicial decision caused will likely cost Delaware taxpayers billions of dollars. 

BREAKING🇺🇸: The Delaware Governor has responded to companies leaving Delaware

"It's really important we get it right for Elon Musk or whoever the litigants are in Delaware courts,"—"We're cognizant that there may be some things that need to change. We're going to work on them."…

— Leave Delaware (@LeaveDelaware) February 3, 2025

Delaware House of Representatives on 6/20/24
“The companies that incorporate in Delaware and bring business and employers to the State are integral to our economy. In fact, the franchise represents the largest combined source of State revenue: $3 billion or 45% of our general… pic.twitter.com/z4rEHBTOgs

— ALEX (@ajtourville) June 22, 2024

Blue states have FA for a very long time, and over the past few years they have been creeping into the FO stage of the process. 

Earnest Hemingway famously said that going bankrupt is a process that happens gradually over time as bad decisions are made but comes suddenly as a tipping point is hit. 

How did you go bankrupt? Gradually...then suddenly. 

It's like eating your seed corn: everything is great until it runs out. Then comes starvation. 

The left hates Donald Trump and Elon Musk so much that they are willing to destroy themselves in order to "get" them. 

Delaware is just the latest entity that has discovered that fighting Trump--and Elon Musk--is a risky business.