German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday said freedom of opinion “also applies to multi-billionaires,” after Elon Musk said that only the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) can ‘save’ the country.
At a press conference in Berlin, Scholz told reporters that “freedom of opinion also means that you can say things that are incorrect and do not contain good political advice.”
He was responding to a post by Musk on his social media platform X, which the South African-born billionaire acquired in 2022.
“Only the AfD can save Germany,” wrote Musk.
Government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann earlier said it was “not the first time that Elon Musk has commented on German politics on X.”
“We take note of it, we don’t categorize it, we don’t judge it,” she added.
The AfD is in second place in German polls on around 19%, two months before early elections expected to be held on February 23.
