Is Elon Musk using Twitter to influence foreign democracies?

Is Elon Musk weaponizing Twitter (X.com) to influence foreign elections and democracies? The billionaire in Donald Trump's cabinet continues to make explosive comments against the United Kingdom, European Union and Germany?

The 53-year-old acquired the social media website in 2022 on the grounds of promising to promote free speech and liberal ideals, but has since drifted into conservative political views; and potentially even alt-right circles.

Now in charge of the Department of Government Efficiency and close to the Republican President-Elect, the man worth $421 billion dollars feels emboldened enough to talk about international politics on the app and thus broadcasts his takes to some 210 million followers.

After falling out with the MAGA crowd over H-1B visas, which allow American companies to hire foreign workers in specialist areas, he now turns his attention to Europe by criticizing the leadership of Britain under Keir Starmer.

The South African launched a tirade on Starmer regarding his handling of child sex abuse cases at the hands of celebrities and grooming gangs when he was in charge of the Crown Prosecution Service from 2008-2013, serving as the director and later the head of the body.

He questioned whether the United States should "liberate" Britain from the centre-left Labour Party, which was only elected to government in July 2023 and with a vast majority from the electorate. Thus essentially calling for an attempt to undermine British democracy.

Musk has also called for Reform UK, the far-right alternative to the Conservatives, to fire Nigel Farage as their leader by calling him unfit for purpose despite him guiding them to five Members of Parliament and 14.3% of the vote. Farage is also a historic ally of Trump and helped spur the UK to leave the EU in 2016.

Musk attacks Germany and Starmer fires back

But the Tesla and SpaceX owner is not stopping his international crusade at Britain alone. He regularly endorses the Alternative for Germany (AfD) as Germany's only answer to stop Islam, despite other far-right politicians such as Marine Le Pen France refusing allyship with the AfD.

The party is described as opposing immigration, Islam and the EU, as well as promoting German nationalism and the Volkisch movement that allowed Adolf Hitler to ascend to chancellor before he began the Holocaust, which murdered over six million people from 1941-1945. The party denies connections to the extreme right.

Both Starmer and Farage have hit back at Musk, as have various influential European politicians. The UK Prime Minister elected to publicly ignore him but did warn "a line has been crossed", implying Musk could be threatening to damage relations with one of the USA's key economic and military allies for the last 111 years.

Other politicians called for the world to respond by breaking the grip of the "super rich" over media and politics, a clear message to the world's richest man to back off from his attempts to try to influence the USA to influence Britain and Europe.

Ironically, Musk's actions online come after Trump has spent years accusing China of attempting to interfere in American democracy in mid-term elections in the build up to the 2020 campaign, which was won by the Democrats and Joe Biden.