Musk’s big bet: Could Germans kick out their liberal elites?

Disillusionment and economic woes are transforming attitudes in the EU’s traditional powerhouse

By Nadezhda Romanenko,

Donald Trump will soon return to the White House, and Elon Musk – the tech billionaire and serial disruptor – regularly weighs in on European politics from across the Atlantic. Meanwhile, in Germany, public dissatisfaction with the political establishment has reached fever pitch. 

As Europe’s largest economy grapples with inflation, high energy costs, and a general sense that “liberal elites” have grown out of touch, more radical parties on both the right and left are seizing the moment. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is gaining ground almost daily, wooing voters who feel abandoned by the mainstream, while Sahra Wagenknecht, a controversial leftist, is forming a new party that could siphon off working-class support from traditional parties. 

With these developments, Germany – once the epitome of stability – now stands on the verge of a political earthquake whose tremors may be felt throughout the European Union.

A major factor behind this upheaval is Germany’s stuttering economy. After decades of relying on relatively cheap Russian gas to fuel its industries and heat its homes, the sudden cut-off has left the country scrambling. Energy bills have skyrocketed, hitting vulnerable households the hardest, and making everyday life more expensive for everyone. Inflation, partially exacerbated by global trends, has eroded purchasing power and confidence in the traditional parties that were expected to safeguard economic prosperity. As factory orders dip and small businesses struggle to stay afloat, voters are growing frustrated – and the AfD has proven adept at channeling that frustration into votes.

But the AfD is not the only beneficiary of this climate of discontent. Wagenknecht, who made her name in the Left Party (Die Linke) before breaking away, is set on pulling disillusioned voters from across the political spectrum. Fiercely critical of deregulated markets and neoliberal orthodoxies, she accuses Germany’s mainstream leaders of abandoning true social justice in favor of what she sees as global corporate interests. For some on the left, who feel the Social Democrats and the Greens have lost touch with working-class realities, her new party offers a tantalizing alternative. By merging left-populist rhetoric with sharp critiques of rising living costs, Wagenknecht might peel away the very voters that kept the center-left afloat for years.

Friedrich Merz, who leads the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and is often seen as Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s principal rival, faces headwinds from unexpected quarters. Musk’s criticism of Merz has drawn attention to a rift between conventional conservatism and the disruptive style championed by a new generation of influential voices. Worse for Merz, Trump’s return to the presidency in the United States signals that a more populist brand of politics may gain transatlantic support. During his first term, Trump’s ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, made headlines by engaging openly with right-leaning German politicians, including members of the AfD. Now, with a second Trump administration, Washington could well encourage a similar or even more robust alignment with populist forces in Berlin.

This newfound enthusiasm for anti-establishment politics also points to a broader pattern across Europe, where trust in traditional parties has been waning. For years, Germany seemed immune to the populist waves that buffeted Italy, France, and other EU states. No longer. Should the AfD continue its ascent – and if Wagenknecht’s party gains real traction – a once-placid two- or three-party system might fracture, making future coalitions messy at best. Already, local and regional elections have hinted at the extent of voter dissatisfaction. On the national stage, that frustration could crystalize into a governing challenge the likes of which Berlin hasn’t seen in decades.

Nor can any of this be separated from Germany’s broader role in Europe. As the bloc’s central economic engine, Germany largely sets the tone for EU policy. A dramatic rightward shift, or even a strong left-populist surge, would ripple through Brussels. Questions of migration, defense policy, and EU fiscal rules might be renegotiated under a less europhile coalition. Countries that share more conservative or nationalist leanings could feel emboldened, while those favoring greater integration or progressive reforms might be sidelined.

In short, Germany’s political shift is a wake-up call to all of Europe: ignoring the grievances of voters on both ends of the spectrum comes at a price. If mainstream elites continue to champion broad liberal agendas without addressing concrete problems – such as ballooning energy bills and the loss of stable employment—more radical alternatives will claim their slice of the political pie. Whether that slice comes from the right, the left, or a combination of both, the result is likely to be a more fragmented, unpredictable Germany. And with Trump soon to be in the White House again and Musk’s disruptive influence seeping into every corner of public discourse, the odds of a return to centrist predictability appear slimmer by the day.

https://www.rt.com/news/610171-musks-big-bet-germany/

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         Gus Leonisky

         POLITICAL CARTOONIST SINCE 1951.

HYPOCRISY ISN’T ONE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS SINS.

HENCE ITS POPULARITY IN THE ABRAHAMIC TRADITIONS…

PLEASE DO NOT BLAME RUSSIA IF WW3 STARTS. BLAME YOURSELF.

Written by Piero Messina

Living in fear. It’s the rule of Fortress Europe. Does anyone know Bartjan Wegter? Virtually unknown to international public opinion and always handled without much attention by the media, Wegter is the anti-terrorism coordinator of the European Union. His role will last five years, starting in March 2024. Wetger, 56, a Dutch diplomat, is tasked with coordinating counter-terrorism work within the European Union, ensuring the implementation and evaluation of the counter-terrorism strategy of the EU, integrate internal and external aspects of the fight against terrorism and improve communication between the EU and third countries.

The role of anti-terrorism coordinator in Europe was introduced twenty years ago, in the emotional wake of the terrorist attack on 11 March of that same year in Madrid. Wetger comes from NATO, where he served as Minister Plenipotentiary of the Netherlands.

So, when individual member states launch terrorism alerts, we can be sure that those assessments have passed through Wetger’s office. Punctual like public holidays and major international events – an example above all: the Paris Olympics – European anti-terrorism alerts have become a common constant in the lives of the citizens of Fortress Europa. Nothing should be underestimated, let’s be clear. But the analyzes provided to justify the alerts appear to be based on ordinary observation of facts rather than on in-depth arguments and precise information. It’s a bit like the Overton window. We need to get used to living and living with fear. In exchange for a share of freedom – devolved with increasingly in-depth technological controls – Fortezza Europa promises to save your life and defeat the shadowy terrorist, who can take on the role of the lone wolf rather than the structured organization.

These holidays also had their terrorism “alert”, a classic, like the gifts found under the Christmas Tree. Thus, in mid-December Brussels dictated the line: “terrorism alert is growing again in Europe, with EU member states now worried about Daesh and a possible new season of Islamic attacks. The alarm is there, and the states do nothing to hide it. Indeed, they also put it in black and white in the press release that accompanies the political decision to strengthen cooperation in the fight against terrorism not only among the Twenty-Seven, but above all with third countries.

It may be a case of political squint but this time, thinking about what happened in Magdeburg – where the terrorist attack could be defined as “anti-Islamic” – European politics will not be able to support the concept: “We said so”.

The wise people of the Council, the body which brings together the elite of the executives of the EU Member States, had turned the spotlight on Daesh Khorasan – in mid-December:

“The Council notes with great concern that the ability of the province of Daesh Khorasan (ISKP) to inspire and conducting external operations, including in Europe, is growing.”

Raising the specter of a distant and almost invisible enemy is a well-tested strategy. European leaders speak of “global threats”. On the one hand we look at Asia, because Isis-Daesh is based in Afghanistan and “present in neighboring areas”.

In the Council conclusions, Member States note that global unrest has increased the level of terrorist threat in some Member States. These external conflicts have contributed to the intensification of radicalization and social polarization across the Union, which can in turn lead to terrorism and violent extremism.

What solutions does politics propose? The list is simple and also quite obvious. There would be three key areas of intervention to strengthen efforts in the fight against terrorism: “the exchange of information; identify and prevent the infiltration of people who represent a terrorist threat; the fight against terrorism and violent extremism online. In order to identify and prevent the infiltration of persons posing a threat to security, the Council calls on the Member States to continue to enter alerts based on return decisions into the Schengen Information System and calls on the Commission and the Member States to operationalize the effective repatriation of persons posing a threat to security”.

There is a lot of focus on new technologies: according to Brussels experts, the digital sphere is increasingly becoming a fertile ground for radicalization. Thus, the Council invites the EU Commission (yes, the Commission led by Ursula Van der Leyen) “to adopt further measures to address the challenges posed by non-compliant online platforms, rigorously applying the regulation on digital services. Rigorous is the key concept. And so rigorous it was in all European capitals and cities, where control levels were stressed to the highest level.

Yet every now and then even in Brussels the numbers don’t add up. How can UE justify the Syrian chaos with the conquest of power by the Islamist militia Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS)? HTS is a group that the EU has branded a terrorist organisation? Perhaps this is why in launching the terrorism alert, yet another this year, the European Foreign Ministers confirmed “the EU’s unwavering commitment to the fight against terrorism in Iraq and Syria”. A case of bad conscience? Probably yes: the risk of yet another wave of migration from Syria towards Europe is the worst nightmare for the pro-European elite.

The story doesn’t end here. Once the Christmas holidays and the end of the year are over, yet another anti-terrorism alert is arriving: Rome and the Jubilee wanted by Pope Francis. Nothing new, nothing sensational. After all, terrorism alerts are like diamonds: they last forever.

https://www.theinteldrop.org/2024/12/28/the-new-nazis-are-scared-fortezza-europa-and-anti-terror-alerts/

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YOURDEMOCRACY.NET RECORDS HISTORY AS IT SHOULD BE — NOT AS THE WESTERN MEDIA WRONGLY REPORTS IT.

         Gus Leonisky

         POLITICAL CARTOONIST SINCE 1951.

HYPOCRISY ISN’T ONE OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS SINS.

HENCE ITS POPULARITY IN THE ABRAHAMIC TRADITIONS…

PLEASE DO NOT BLAME RUSSIA IF WW3 STARTS. BLAME YOURSELF.