In a move reminiscent of his pal Donald Trump’s ambitions for Canada and Greenland, billionaire Elon Musk is questioning whether the United States should “free the people of Britain from their oppressive government.”
The Tesla founder raised this provocative question in an early tweet on Monday, part of a prolonged spree of social media activity targeting the U.K., during which he has shown support for a jailed far-right extremist, called for the removal of a right-wing party leader, and demanded the imprisonment of a junior minister from the new Labour government.
Recently, Musk has criticized the British government for its management of investigations concerning organized crime rings allegedly responsible for the systematic abuse of young women.
In October, the Labour administration dismissed a proposal for a public investigation into child sexual exploitation in Oldham, asserting that their focus is on implementing the recommendations laid out in the final 2022 report of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sex Abuse, recommendations that had not been acted upon by the former Conservative administration.
Musk has also demanded that Jess Phillips, the junior minister in Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s cabinet who oversees issues related to violence against women, be jailed, labeling her as a “rape genocide apologist.”
These statements prompted a sharp criticism from Starmer on Monday, who suggested that Musk is exploiting the “truly appalling” issue of child exploitation for self-promotion.
When questioned about Musk’s comments, Starmer stated: “Those who propagate lies and misinformation across the board are not focused on the victims; they are only interested in their own notoriety.”
Throughout his recent statements, Musk has consistently voiced his support for Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, a far-right, Islamophobic activist who operates under the alias Tommy Robinson.
Robinson—who has been found guilty of mortgage fraud and assault, has history with the fascist British National Party, and is accused of stalking a female journalist—is presently serving an 18-month prison sentence for reiterating false claims against a Syrian refugee.
Musk has advocated for his release.
Nigel Farage, the Trump-admiring leader of Britain’s far-right Reform Party, has made it clear that he wants to separate himself from Robinson.
On Sunday, Musk demanded Farage’s ousting as the leader of Reform after Farage expressed his disapproval of Musk’s backing of Robinson.
In a related development, another far-right figure surfaced on Sunday: Andrew Tate, the misogynistic influencer currently under investigation for rape and human trafficking in Romania, posed in a “serious post” whether he should run for prime minister to challenge Starmer.
As of the time of writing, Musk’s poll on X regarding whether America should liberate Britain had garnered 64 percent backing from 500,000 votes.
The tech mogul and staunch supporter of Trump has also engaged in German political discourse lately, showing his endorsement for the far-right Alternative für Deutschland party during the holiday season.
On Monday, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre expressed concern to public broadcaster NKR about “a man with significant social media influence and ample financial resources being so directly involved in the domestic matters of other nations.”
