Elon Musk, already busy with US politics, stepped into Germany's on Friday, drawing the attention of millions of X users and leaders who don't share his support of the far-right Alternative for Germany party. "Only the AfD can save Germany," Musk wrote in response to a far-right video influencer, the New York Times reports, referring to the anti-immigrant party with connections to neo-Nazis. The AfD's candidate for chancellor welcomed the endorsement an hour later. "Yes! You are perfectly right," Alice Weidel posted.
Musk's post had more than 25 million views in the first 10 hours or so. Germany is headed for an election in February after the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition. Scholz acknowledged Musk's post Friday without directly attacking it, noting that free speech rights apply even to the wealthy. "Freedom of speech also means that you're able to say things that aren't right and do not contain good political advice," he said. A German former member of the European Parliament mocked Musk's post as one of "the world domination fantasies of the American tech kings," per the Guardian.
The AfD, which promotes populist and anti-immigrant "Germany first" policies, is riding an increase in popularity. It's been accused of returning to Nazi-era ideology and slogans, per CNN, and a judge ruled this spring that the nation's domestic intelligence agency can keep it under surveillance over concerns it's a threat to democracy. After the deaths Friday at a Christmas market in the city of Magdeburg, Musk returned to German politics. In response to a post showing the chancellor speaking about the attack, the billionaire wrote: "Scholz should resign immediately. Incompetent fool." (More Elon Musk stories.)
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