Elon Musk has stirred controversy in Germany after calling Chancellor Olaf Scholz an “incompetent fool” and backing the country’s far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
In an article about
“Only the AfD can save Germany,” Musk, who is the richest person in the world, wrote alongside the post.
Musk then addressed the news of an attack on Friday at a Christmas market in the eastern German city of Magdeburg that killed at least five people.
Musk shared a post purportedly featuring a symbol of the suspect saying that the attack is the “DIRECT RESULT of out-of-control mass immigration. “
“Scholz should resign immediately. Incompetent fool,” Musk added in a separate post.
Leading right-wing figures across Europe have seized on the incident to promote anti-immigrant rhetoric and call for tighter border controls.
Musk’s comments, which come just two months before Germany is set to hold a snap federal election, have sparked backlash in the country.
Scholz appeared to respond indirectly at a press conference in Berlin: “Here we have freedom of speech. This also applies to billionaires. Freedom of speech also means that you can say things that are correct and that do not imply intelligence. ” political advice,” according to The Guardian.
Karl Lauterbach, the German health minister, said on X that Musk “should not interfere in our politics, adding that “his platform profits from hate and incitement and radicalizes people.”
The AfD party was established in 2013 as an anti-euro party, but it has since focused more on immigration and has been seen as increasingly far-right.
Musk, however, has questioned in the past how far-right the party’s policies are.
In an article in X in June, he wrote, “Why is there such a negative reaction from other people about the AfD?”
“They keep saying “far right”, but the policies of AfD that I’ve read about don’t sound extremist. Maybe I’m missing something,” he added.
The Tesla CEO has shown development for right-wing leaders, adding Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Nigel Farage, leader of the British Reform Party.
Earlier this week, Farage boasted that Musk was “right behind” him and hinted that the tech mogul might financially back his party.
Jump to