A group of over 30 MEPs has called on European Parliament president Roberta Metsola to invite billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk to address a Plenary session. In a letter, signed by representatives of mainly conservative and nationalist parties, the MEPs describe the X owner as “a trailblazer in the digital revolution,” and that his insights “could make the EU a hub of creativity and technological advancement, again.”
The invitation comes as Musk’s frequent interventions in European politics are sending EU elites into a spin. Earlier this month, the billionaire live-streamed a conversation with Alice Weidel, leader of Germany’s right-wing Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), on his platform X. During the talk, Musk endorsed the AfD, calling it “Germany’s only hope for renewal.” While his support sparked outrage among EU officials and liberal MEPs, it was celebrated by AfD supporters who have long been excluded from mainstream media platforms.
The European Commission dispatched 150 officials to monitor the livestream, claiming it risked violating the Digital Services Act. Leftist and liberal MEPs even labelled the conversation a “threat to democracy” and called for tighter regulation of Musk’s platform. Some went as far as suggesting the livestream could constitute an illegal party donation—despite the fact that mainstream parties regularly receive extensive media coverage.
The reaction to Musk’s engagement with European politics, particularly his endorsement of the AfD, exposes what columnist Sabine Beppler-Spahl called the “authoritarian tendencies of the elite.” Writing for europeanconservative.com, she argued, “The establishment’s fear of Musk reveals its deeper fear of the electorate”:
This narrative reflects a persistent and problematic anti-populist assumption: that voters are passive objects, easily swayed by ‘demagogues’ rather than acting on their own political judgment.
Italian PM Giorgia Meloni also recently pointed out the hypocrisy of liberals and leftists who complain about the influence of Musk while supporting the efforts of people like George Soros.
The problem is when wealthy people use their resources to finance parties, associations and political exponents all over the world to influence the political choices of nation-states. That’s not what Musk is doing. This, for example, is what George Soros does.
The tensions between Musk and EU regulators are nothing new. In 2024, he revealed that the European Commission had offered X a secret deal to censor content, which he refused.
The invitation to Musk highlights the growing divide in European politics between those advocating for free speech and innovation and those entrenched in the bureaucratic orthodoxy of Brussels. Whether or not the invitation is accepted, it symbolises a broader pushback against what many see as an elite unwilling to trust citizens to make their own political decisions.
