German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has expressed fears over the election of Elon Musk from the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, weeks before next month’s snap election.
Scholz, in an interview with Stern magazine published on Saturday, said while he was not fazed by the US tech billionaire’s attacks on him and other German politicians, Musk’s endorsement of the far-right party was much more worrying.
“Far more troubling than such insults is the fact that Musk supports a party partly like the AfD, which advocates rapprochement with Putin Russia and seeks to weaken transatlantic relations,” the chancellor told German magazine.
Musk backed AFD in a long opinion article recently in the Welt Am Sonunta newspaper.
Germany’s domestic intelligence monitors the national AfD party, which is suspected of being a far-right organization. Some national branches of the AfD have already obtained this designation.
The party has made tremendous gains in eastern Germany in recent regional votes and has nearly doubled its popularity measured in opinion polls to around 20%, in the run-up to the snap election on February 23.
Musk is scheduled to take a convention with the AFD leader, Alice Weidel, in spaces X on January 9.
Musk, a very no-nonsense advisor to US President-elect Donald Trump, has been commenting on German politics on his social media platform X for days now.
He called Scholz an “imbecile” and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier an “anti-democratic tyrant. “
Scholz said insults from rich media tycoons were par for the course.
“As Social Democrats, we have been used since the last century for marketing by wealthy media that do not appreciate Social Democratic politics and do not hesitate to explain their opinions,” Scholz told Stern, referring to his center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD).
Even if their voices are more successful as the media evolves, the scenario is not new, the chancellor said. “We will have to remain calm,” he declared when several German politicians expressed their inflammation over the ordeal.
Musk, in 2022, had made a personal request to Scholz over a phone call regarding the federal government’s plans to subsidize electric charging stations across the country. Tesla, owned by Musk, operates its own system of charging stations in Germany.
“It’s no secret to anyone that Tesla is against government investment for electric charging stations in Germany,” the chancellor said, suggesting that Musk’s comments stand out from business dissatisfaction.
German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck had more clarity for Musk.
“Hand over our democracy, Mr. Musk!” Habeck told New Germans magazine Der Spiegel when asked if Musk was a risk for Germany. He criticized Musk’s outspokenness for the far-right AFD.
Hayeck said the billionaire, who plays a main role in the next government of the United States, did everything that could protect his own interests.
“The combination of immense wealth, data and networks, the use of synthetic intelligence and the willingness to forget about regulations is a frontal attack on our democracy,” Habeck said.
He further described Musk’s recent article endorsing the AfD as “awful,” and warned that his attempts to influence German politics must not be underestimated.
“The richest guy in the world, owner of one of the most difficult communications platforms, brazenly admits one component that is the right-wing extremist of components. We won’t have to make the mistake of brushing this,” he declared.
MK/WD (DPA)