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Mega-billionaire Elon Musk, owner of the social media site X, plans to hold an online audio discussion on the platform with the leader of a far right German party, amplifying the party’s fascist and neo-Nazi ideology.
The discussion between him and Alice Weidel, a leader for Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the party’s candidate for chancellor in the February 23 snap elections, will take place”very soon,” a spokesperson for Weidel said, indicating that it will “definitely” happen before the elections. The German-based newswire agency dpa reported that the talk between Weidel and Musk would occur on January 10.
Musk signaled his support for AfD in mid-December, writing in a post on X that “only the AfD can save Germany.” He also penned an op-ed in a German newspaper last week, describing the party as the “last spark of hope” for the country.
Musk’s announcement that he will engage in a discussion with the party’s leader indicates that he may insert himself further into German politics in the coming weeks — much like he did in the 2024 U.S. presidential election, spending over a quarter of a billion dollars of his own money to help elect Donald Trump.
AfD is an extreme right, neo-Nazi organization. The party is vehemently anti-immigration and is particularly bigoted against Muslim migrants. Its leaders have also expressed antisemitic sentiments, and have downplayed the atrocities by Nazi German leaders, going so far as to demand museums and schools change how the Holocaust is taught in schools.
Some AfD leaders have minimized or outright denied the Holocaust. Others have attended neo-Nazi events, including two leaders who appeared at a gathering of neo-Nazis in Switzerland just last month.
Musk has downplayed the party’s extremist views, claiming in his op-ed that a singular instance of one of the party’s leaders being in a same-sex relationship negated its other actions — a dubious suggestion, given that AfD is also opposed to marriage equality in Germany.
Polling indicates that AfD is not currently winning the race in Germany, but is gaining popularity — and other parties may consider forming a coalition with the far right one in order to create a government.
Lawmakers, including current Chancellor Olaf Scholz, are encouraging voters to thwart Musk’s endorsements and to vote for their own interests.
“Where Germany goes from here will be decided by you — the citizens. It will not be decided by the owners of social media channels,” Scholz said in a New Year’s message, a not-so-subtle jab at Musk.
Scholz added that “it won’t be the person who yells loudest who will decide where Germany goes from here,” but instead, it will “be up to the vast majority of reasonable and decent people.”
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