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ER Editor: So the AfD becomes the most popular party in Germany according to recent polling, then the domestic intelligence agency classifies it as ‘extremist,’ subject to surveillance and other security measures. Then more people want to join the party …
This RT article from today is worth perusing. There are some sensible views being expressed —
No need to ban AfD – incoming German interior minister
Speaking to Germany’s ARD broadcaster on Sunday, Dobrindt (new German interior minister) said, “I am convinced that the AfD doesn’t have to be banned out of the way,” but rather consigned to insignificance through good governance. He also called for an open discussion over the reasons that the AFD has become so popular.
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In an interview with Bild over the weekend, CDU Secretary General Carsten Linnemann said that “most voters vote for the AfD out of protest,” adding that “you can’t ban protest.”
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AfD Challenges “Right-Wing Extremist” Designation in Court
The latest attack on the party has already backfired, prompting “a new record” in membership applications.
AfD co-leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla give a statement after the first parliamentary group meeting of their party on February 25, 2025. Photo: Tobias Schwarz / AFP
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On Monday, May 5th, AfD acted on this promise and took action against the spy agency at an administrative court in Cologne, where BfV is headquartered.
The party’s legal team argues that the decision interferes with Germany’s democratic processes, restricts AfD’s constitutional right to criticize government policies (such as those pertaining to migration), and publicizing it hurts the party’s image and electoral chances.
Therefore, they demand that BfV suspend the “extremist” classification and refrain from surveilling AfD officials until there’s a definitive court ruling.
Meanwhile, it seems this newest attack on AfD has already backfired, as the party gained over 1,000 new membership applications in just three days, “a new record,” according to a statement issued by Weidel.
Translation: 1,000 membership applications in 3 days: This is likely a new record, which also demonstrates how strong the support for our AfD really is. Welcome to the Alternative for Germany! Become a member now: mitmachen.afd.de
AfD also received support from conservatives all over Europe and the U.S., including from Vice President JD Vance, who predicted back in February that Berlin would try to ban the party if its popularity continued to grow. It has, and “now the bureaucracy wants to destroy it,” Vance wrote on social media.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio was even more direct, calling on Berlin to undo the classification and adding that allowing such measures of surveillance against a democratically elected opposition means that Germany is “not a democracy, but a tyranny in disguise.”
The German foreign ministry replied to Rubio by saying that the decision was the result of a “thorough and independent” investigation—not really, as BfV is supervised by the internal ministry, under the control of the socialist SPD, which has been trying to ban AfD for years—and adding that “independent courts” will have the final say.
This last part at least would be reassuring, if not for the countless examples showing how Berlin has weaponized its judiciary in recent years to crush dissent, going as far as sentencing journalists and politicians to prison for memes criticizing the government and the lack of free speech.
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