Billionaire Elon Musk used his Internet platform X (formerly Twitter) to intervene in German politics a week before the state elections in Bavaria and Hesse. On Friday he shared a tweet from an anti-immigration user called “Radio Genoa”, in which he writes that he hopes that the right-wing AfD wins, a “European suicide”. An attached video criticizes the fact that eight German ships belonging to non-governmental organizations are currently taking in refugees from the Mediterranean in order to bring them to Italy.
“Is the German public aware of this?” wrote Musk, who, according to Platform X, has 158.3 million followers there. The Foreign Office reacted quickly and wrote in English: “Yes. And they call it saving lives.”
The background is the Italian government’s criticism that the Foreign Office is supporting sea rescue organizations with up to two million euros this year. The co-chairman of the green-affiliated Heinrich Böll Foundation, Jan Phillip Albrecht, called on the EU Commission to stop Musk’s “election propaganda”.
Musk has been increasingly vocal on political issues lately. In May, he hosted the launch of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ Republican presidential campaign on X. Last week, he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The billionaire also took a stand in the U.S. immigration debate on Thursday, visiting the Texas border with Mexico to meet with local politicians and law enforcement and get what he called an “unfiltered” view of the situation. He published a video of the visit. The South African native then referenced his own status as an immigrant to the United States on X, describing himself as “extremely pro-immigrant.” He called for an end to irregular border crossings and an expansion of legal immigration. Later, Musk asked on X why US policymakers care more about Ukraine than the US border.