Anger After Musk Backs German Far-Right

AFP/APP

Frankfurt:Elon Musk sparked controversy Friday with a post on his platform, X, claiming that the far-right AfD party is the only one that can “save Germany.” The comment ignited accusations that Musk was attempting to interfere in Germany’s upcoming elections.

The billionaire, who is expected to play a key role in US President-elect Donald Trump’s administration as “efficiency czar,” made the statement alongside a video commentary about Friedrich Merz, leader of Germany’s center-right CDU party.

The video criticized Merz — who is leading in polls to become the next chancellor after February elections — for refusing to collaborate with the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD), currently polling in second place.

Following a deadly car-ramming attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg, blamed on a Saudi man, Musk labeled the incident a “DIRECT RESULT of mass unchecked immigration.”

German lawmakers from across mainstream parties, all of which have ruled out cooperating with the AfD, expressed outrage at Musk’s comments.

Musk later doubled down, stating, “AfD is obviously NOT ‘far-right’! Just common sense policies.”

Dennis Radtke, an MEP for the CDU, criticized Musk’s intervention.

“It is threatening, irritating, and unacceptable for a key figure in the future US government to interfere in the German election campaign,” he told Handelsblatt.

Radtke further called Musk a “threat to democracy in the Western world,” accusing him of turning X into a “disinformation slingshot.”

Alex Schaefer, a lawmaker from the Social Democrats, also condemned Musk’s post, stating, “We object to interference in our election campaign.”

Former finance minister Christian Lindner, from the FDP, acknowledged that some of Musk’s ideas were “inspiring” but urged the Tesla CEO not to “rush to conclusions from afar.”

Lindner added, “While migration control is crucial for Germany, the AfD stands against freedom and business — it’s a far-right extremist party.”

Chancellor Olaf Scholz took a restrained approach, saying, “We have freedom of expression, which also applies to multi-billionaires,” while noting that this also allows for “statements that are not right and do not contain good political advice.”

Musk Meddling Concerns

The AfD warmly welcomed Musk’s praise, with co-leader Alice Weidel thanking him in a video message, calling the party “the one and only alternative for our country.”

At a press conference, a German government spokesperson avoided direct comment on Musk’s post but reiterated concerns about the platform X since Musk’s acquisition.

Despite such reservations, the government decided to maintain its accounts on the platform, citing its importance for public outreach.

This is not the first time Musk has weighed in on German politics. Last month, he tweeted in German, calling Scholz “a fool” after the collapse of his coalition government. Scholz dismissed the remark as “not very friendly.”

In 2021, Musk visited Germany ahead of national elections, meeting with CDU candidate Armin Laschet, who subsequently led the party to its worst-ever election results.

Musk’s political commentary has also drawn attention in Britain, where he appears to have aligned with far-right politician Nigel Farage.