
ER Editor: A ‘close the door on your way out’ story. And another chapter of Brand Elon, v2.0. From The Guardian yesterday–
Elon Musk pens German newspaper opinion piece supporting far-right AfD party
The tech entrepreneur and close adviser to Donald Trump Elon Musk has taken a stunning new public step in his support for the far-right German political party Alternative for Germany (AfD), publishing a supportive guest opinion piece for the country’s Welt am Sonntag newspaper that has prompted the commentary editor to resign in protest.
The commentary piece in German was launched online on Saturday before being published on Sunday in the flagship paper of the Axel Springer media group, which also owns the US politics news site Politico.
Musk uses populist and personal language to try to deny AfD’s extremist bent, and the essay expands on his post on his social media platform, X, on which he last week claimed that “only the AfD can save Germany”.
Translated, Musk’s piece said: “The portrayal of the AfD as rightwing extremist is clearly false, considering that Alice Weidel, the party’s leader, has a same-sex partner from Sri Lanka! Does that sound like Hitler to you? Please!”
NOTE: We are earnestly searching for this guest opinion piece of Musk and can find the link nowhere. Can anybody help? A Yandex search doesn’t seem to work unless it’s buried on page 125. All reporting about Musk’s piece is just that – reporting ABOUT it but not linking to it. Is it here but published as part of a rebuttal? Video report (German).
Thanks to colleague Michel van der Kemp for finding this archived version for us. Browsers will translate from German.
The Axel Springer media group publishing this op-ed owns Politico, too. Here’s the Politico report ABOUT it.
Musk’s tweet —
Only the AfD can save Germany https://t.co/Afu0ea1Fvt
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 20, 2024
AfD leader Alice Weidel responds —
Yes! You are perfectly right, @elonmusk! Please also have a look into my interview on president Trump, how socialist Merkel ruined our country, how the Soviet European Union destroys the countries economic backbone and malfunctioning Germany!https://t.co/PwPgqJgB8w https://t.co/BdCQe3eWwk
— Alice Weidel (@Alice_Weidel) December 20, 2024
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We remind readers that Musk’s opinions on immigration in the UK were pretty remarkable for their psychological effect on the population there as evidenced by remarks on Twitter at the time. These remarks were made around the time those three small girls allegedly got stabbed by a teenager of immigrant parents in Southport late July/early August. For example —
Elon Musk is weighing in BIGLY on Keir Starmer on X. Obviously Keir Starmer isn’t happy and has criticised Musk. Elon says that Civil War is inevitable in the UK. And the UK has a two tier police system along with comparing the UK with the Soviet Union.
Musk is throwing HUGE… pic.twitter.com/vQ6KVu7qQg
— The Yorkshire Lass (@real_shirelass) August 6, 2024
***
See this we posted a few days ago on the popularity of Weidel (Afd) over other German presidential candidates. They have an election coming up on Feb. 23 2025 —
German right-wing chancellor candidate tops poll – Bild
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Top German newspaper editor quits over Musk op-ed
The Tesla and SpaceX owner penned an article praising the anti-immigration AfD party
RT
The opinion editor at Germany’s leading newspaper Die Welt has resigned over a decision to publish an op-ed by Elon Musk, in which he defended the anti-immigration Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
“I have always enjoyed running the opinion pages of Welt and Welt am Sonntag. Today, an article written by Elon Musk appeared in Welt am Sonntag. I handed in my resignation yesterday, after it went to print,” Eva Marie Kogel wrote on X.

.
The billionaire owner of SpeceX, Tesla and X (formerly Twitter) wrote the article after praising the AfD on social media. In his op-ed, the close ally of US President-elect Donald Trump hailed the AfD as “the last spark of hope” for Germany. The billionaire insisted that its “pragmatic” approach will usher in a revival of the country, while arguing that other parties are out of touch with regular people.
“The traditional parties have failed Germany. Their policies have led to economic stagnation, social unrest and an erosion of national identity,” Musk wrote. “Despite being far-right, AfD represents political realism that resonates with many Germans who feel that their concerns are being ignored by the establishment.” (ER: What’s not to like?)
Musk went on to rebuff criticism against the AfD, stating that “their portrayal as far-right is clearly false.”
According to German media, the publication of the op-ed sparked intense debate among the staff at Die Welt, with some viewing it as meddling in the snap parliamentary election, which is scheduled for February 2025. (ER: Election interference? EO 13848)
Jan Philipp Burgard, Die Welt’s senior reporter, penned a rebuttal to Musk, calling his praise of AfD “fatally flawed” and arguing that it was “a big mistake” not to label the party as far-right.
Another Die Welt journalist, Franziska Zimmerer, insisted in her own op-ed that the text written by Musk “should not have appeared” in the paper. “Election appeals, no matter the party, have no place in independent media,” she wrote.
Founded in 2013, AfD has been pushing for a tightening of asylum laws and fighting organized crime and Islamic extremism. The party has become more popular in recent years, winning its first regional election in Thuringia in September.
The 2025 election was called after the ruling three-party coalition collapsed due to a budget dispute.
Source
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Published to The Liberty Beacon from EuropeReloaded.com
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