The tech billionaire Elon Musk further showed his support for right-wing politics this week by coming out in support of Alternative for Germany on Friday. This is after he claimed that the far-right German political party is the only one capable of saving Germany before the country’s February election.
Important Information
- In a tweet, Musk complimented the AfD, a political group known for its anti-Islamic, anti-immigration, and nationalist policies, saying, “Only the AfD can save Germany.”
- More than 100,000 people liked Musk’s recommendation, and it received at least 30 million views.
- Germany “applies to multi-billionaires,” German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Friday before taking his jab at Musk, continuing: “Freedom of speech also means that you can say things that are not right and do not contain good political advice.”
- The German federal election was rescheduled to early 2025 after Scholz recently lost a confidence vote and the country’s ruling coalition collapsed, and Musk’s appointment comes just two months before that date.
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Fad: What is it?
Alternative for Germany was founded in 2013 and capitalized on the 2015 European refugee crisis along with its own economic crisis to espouse anti-Islamic and nationalist ideas. Germany’s intelligence agency has been monitoring the party for potential radicalism, and last month it announced that it would expel three members from its ranks for allegedly cooperating with an extremist organization allegedly planning an armed uprising against the German government. It is the only far-right party that has won a German state election since the Nazi era. Thus, Alternative for Germany has somehow managed to gain support despite its tumultuous past.
The big number
19%. According to a survey by the Pew Research Center, that is the share of German citizens who have a favorable opinion of Alternative for Germany. The survey also indicates that the number is the highest favorability it has ever seen in its eight years of studying the subject. The think tank asserts that the majority of Germans (79%) have a negative opinion of the party.
Important Background:
Musk, one of President-elect Donald Trump’s closest supporters and advisors, has spent much of the week espousing his politics on American politics. As a measure to avoid a shutdown of the government, House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., presented a bill earlier this week for federal funding, which the tech entrepreneur, who is not even an appointee in Trump’s administration, lambasted on a long series of tweets. Musk said that the law, which ultimately withered after being examined by
It is “one of the worst bills ever written,” and neither he nor Trump should be permitted to pass it. Democratic politicians criticized Musk for his comments, with Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Va.) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) tweeting, “Billionaires must not be allowed to run our government.”
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