“What matters isn’t the opinion of people abroad,” Jacobelli said. “It’s the opinion of the French people.”
The X, SpaceX and Tesla owner has in recent years regularly weighed in on European politics and offered support to anti-immigration right-wing and far-right groups, including the AfD in Germany and far-right provocateur Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known as Tommy Robinson, in the United Kingdom.
Musk’s politics and vision of free speech made him something of a hero among parts of the European right. National Rally MEP Thierry Mariani in 2023 even nominated Musk for the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought, the EU’s top human rights award.
But Musk’s association with U.S. President Donald Trump, who is highly unpopular in France even among the far right, and controversies like his stiff-armed gesture that critics say resembled a Nazi salute have turned him into a black sheep in the country.
“These marks of support matter more to reporters than they do to voters,” Mariani told POLITICO. “We haven’t asked for anything.”
Added fellow National Rally MEP Fabrice Leggeri: “There is no reason to seek partnerships with foreign business leaders, particularly those outside Europe.”