PARIS– Elon Musk has been a regular presence in Donald Trump’s orbit since the November elections, with the Tesla CEO advising the president-elect on multiple issues, including federal ones. government effectiveness to the present Russia-Ukraine War.
Now, Musk’s growing criticism and mockery of European leaders and governments, something he has done repeatedly through X, the social media platform he owns, has sparked a backlash from European governments, as calls for regulatory action against X multiply in Europe.
In a speech Wednesday to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of Spanish fascist dictator Francisco Franco, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez made clear reference to Musk’s recent online attacks, many of which have been directed at German leader Olaf Scholz and the British. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
Although Sanchez did not directly mention Musk by name, he said the international far-right is “openly attacking our institutions” and “stoking hatred,” adding that the movement was “led in this matter by the man most rich on the planet. reference to the boss of Tesla and SpaceX.
Elon Musk gestures as he takes the stage during a rally for former U.S. President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at Madison Square Garden on October 27, 2024, in New York.
Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
Earlier on Wednesday, French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot also spoke out against Musk’s online attacks and called out the European Union (EU), as a regulator of the issues digital for EU countries, to take stronger action against Musk used his social platform, alleging that he was “interfering” in the domestic politics of European countries.
Barrot, who is France’s top diplomat, said Musk was intervening in the European public debate either “to create buzz, and that is extremely regrettable” or to “conclude new alliances with far-right parties.” .
Musk sparked controversy in December when he wrote on in recent years thanks in part to his anti-immigration rhetoric. .
Musk then fully supported the AfD in a Editorial from a German newspaper. Days earlier, after a deadly Dec. 20 car-ramming attack at a Christmas market in the German city of Magdeburg, Musk called German Chancellor Olaf Scholz an “incompetent fool” and said he should immediately resign.
Musk’s frequent interventions against Scholz come at a sensitive political moment in Germany, just weeks before voters go to the polls for next month’s general election.
This month, Musk has focused his online attacks on British Prime Minister Starmer, amid a highly sensitive and acrimonious domestic debate in the United Kingdom on the subject. historical cases of child sexual grooming by gangs of mainly British men of Pakistani origin while Starmer was head of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) between 2008 and 2013. statement Speaking to the BBC, Starmer defended his record and said he had tackled prosecutions “head on” and made multiple reforms to help victims of sexual abuse.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer delivers a speech on a plan to reduce NHS waiting times, during a visit to a healthcare provider in Surrey, southwest London, January 6, 2025.
Léon Neal/POOL/AFP via Getty Images
On Monday, Musk posted on X that “America should free the British people from their tyrannical government.” The Tesla CEO also championed the cause of English far-right activist Tommy Robinson, calling for his release after he was sentenced to 18 months in prison for contempt of court after repeatedly making false statements against a Syrian refugee.
In his Wednesday interview on French radio, French FM Barrot suggested that Musk’s interventions in the domestic politics of European countries were all the more inappropriate given that Musk is part of President-elect Trump’s government-in-waiting.
“When you participate in a government or aspire to participate in it, your opinions have quite special value,” Mr. Barrot said.
In a speech delivered Monday to French ambassadors on foreign policy issues, French President Emannuel Macron also expressed disbelief: “Ten years ago, who would have believed it if we were told that the owner of one of the largest social networks in the world would support a new international reactionary movement and directly intervene in elections, including in Germany? “
In his editorial published in a German newspaper in late December, Musk said the idea that the AfD party is “a far-right party” is “false.” Yet twice last year, a leading AfD figure, Björn Höcke, was found guilty by German regional courts of deliberately using Nazi slogans in public speeches, in violation of German laws regarding hate speech. Höcke denied knowing the root of the phrases he used.
Despite this, the AfD’s anti-immigration stance has won it support in Germany, and many polls there have it in second place in next month’s elections.
On Thursday, Elon Musk’s support for the AfD will once again be in the spotlight when X hosts party leader Alice Weidel in a livestreamed event. The EU’s European Commission said it would monitor the live broadcast to ensure it complies with EU law and does not unfairly favor the AfD ahead of February’s elections.
At a press conference Tuesday at his Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida, President-elect Donald Trump brushed off Elon Musk’s criticism of European politicians, saying in part: “I know he said negative things about a few people running for office. office, but that’s not that unusual.
Trump also said Musk was “doing a good job.”