German Interior Minister Nancy Feiser (SPD) ordered police to shut down the leading right-wing monthly magazine Compact, and 200 armed police officers raided the home of publisher Jurgen Elsa on Monday. But now the crackdown on free speech appears to be backfiring, as more and more people are calling for Feiser to resign, and Elon Musk is joining in.
Gateway Pundit reports on Germany’s “Antifa”-linked Homeland Security Secretary Nancy Feiser, who published an op-ed in 2021 for an “Antifa” magazine run by a group the Bavarian secret police considers “far-left” and “communist-linked.”
In 2022, Faeser was implicated in a plot to oust German cybersecurity chief Arne Schönbohm, a conservative Christian Democrat, for not being sufficiently pro-censorship, and was accused of calling himself a “comedian” on public broadcasting, along with Jan Böhmermann.Policy Network AnalysisOn Twitter, it is loosely linked to “Media Matters” and “Correctives,” which is supported by Social Democratic donors.
In December 2022, Feser ordered a massive raid on a group of so-called “Reich Citizens” accused of not recognizing the current German Basic Law as a valid constitution and plotting a coup, ordering the arrest of 27 suspects, including 71-year-old Prince Heinrich XIII of Reuss.
The press and six TV crews were on the scene, similar to the FBI-CNN arrest of Roger Stone. Weapons seized in the alleged coup included several hunting rifles, a crossbow and a 13th-century cutlass. The trial began in May after a year and a half in custody.
Since 2024, Thomas Haldenwang, head of the state secret political police in Faeser, has briefed government-friendly journalists on a campaign by the left-wing NGO “Correctiv” to frame members of the AfD (“Alternative for Germany”) as planning to “deport millions of foreigners and German citizens.” “Correctiv”, funded by the CIA-cut Open Society and Pierre Omidyar, was forced to withdraw in court when the German and EU taxpayers had no evidence for the claims.
now Faeser ordered German police have raided and closed down the country’s leading right-wing monthly magazine Compact (circulation 40,000) because it “incites hatred against Jews, foreigners and our parliamentary democracy.”
Jürgen Elsasser, publisher of “Compact”, was raided by police at 6 a.m. at his home and office in Falkensee, Brandenburg, and journalists took photos of him being arrested in his bathrobe.
all TV production crew Also present were members of the left-wing news format “Contraste” on the public broadcaster ARD. The editor-in-chief of “Contraste”, Georg Heil, is the brother of the Labour Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD). Georg Heil also appears to have known about the “Reichstag” raids in 2022. In Germany, it is a crime for the police to leak personal information to the press. Lawyer Christian Conrad famous.
Police even removed furniture from Elsa’s office, including desks and chairs, claiming they posed a threat to democracy.
Herrn Elsässer räumt man das Haus aus, wegen des “bösen” #compact-Magazine, aber Migranten, die Frauen vergewaltigen, sind am nächsten Tag wieder auf freiem Fuß.
Kann mich bitte mal jemand kneifen. pic.twitter.com/FOFrRbaRMA
— Heimatgefühl (@HeimatliebeDE) July 16, 2024
But now the politically motivated crackdown on right-wing media appears to be backfiring. Noted conservative jurist Rupert Scholz and free-speech lawyer Jurgen Steinhofel have both called the government shutdown “clearly unconstitutional.”
Constitutional lawyer Professor Volker Bohm-Nesler said the raid showed the Antifa leader’s “authoritarian state approach to free speech.”
Even left-wing congressmen Dieter Dem A member of the former Communist Party of East Germany (“the Left”) likened Faeser to “McCarthy” and warned: “The noose of those who think they know everything is tightening more and more around diversity and freedom of expression! The Left must stand in solidarity with Compact and Jürgen Elsässer!”
Elon Musk joined in, accusing the German government of “using the military to suppress freedom of speech.”
The government is brandishing its military boots and trampling on freedom of the press.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 16, 2024
EU Commissioners Thierry Breton and Margarete Vestager (Denmark’s Radical Left Party) have threatened to impose EU censorship laws (Digital Services Act) on X, potentially fining it up to 6% of its global revenue if it fails to comply with EU censorship laws. The Digital Services Act is modeled after Germany’s NetzDG law, which lawyer Jochen Steinhöfel has called unconstitutional. Many EU observers believe that the German government is behind the EU’s move to censor X.
URGENT!!! Today, German censorship queen Nancy Feser banned the right-wing magazine COMPACT.
I am a proud guest journalist on this platform and recently contributed an article on PROJECT 2025.
It is clear to me that this is happening right now… pic.twitter.com/2XgLyJYGg1
— Naomi Seibt (@SeibtNaomi) July 16, 2024
“The ban on Compact magazine is a serious blow to freedom of the press,” said Alternative for Germany (AfD) co-chairs Alice Weidel and Tino Churupala. “We are watching these developments with great concern. Banning a media outlet means rejecting diversity of discourse and opinion. A ban is always the most far-reaching measure. Federal Interior Minister Nancy Feiser is abusing her power to stifle critical reporting. We urge the minister to respect freedom of the press.”
Many observers have pointed out that Interior Minister Nancy Feiser misused German association registration laws to ban the magazine “Compact”, which was not a club, association or PAC but a limited company.
Media lawyer Carsten Brennike It also questioned the legality of leaking the time and location of the raid to the press. “For a ministry or other authority to leak information about a police raid in advance for self-promotion purposes is not only illegal, but also a violation of the personal rights of those affected. It is not yet clear who leaked the information, whether it was at the highest levels of the responsible ministry or someone else. However, it was no coincidence that the press was there that morning, ready and waiting to film. Such leaks show that many of those in charge today are more interested in promoting themselves in the ongoing election campaign than in performing their duties. Of course, such leaks do not strengthen trust in the rule of law.”
“Compact” publisher Jurgen Elsesser has announced that he will file a countersuit and is expected to win. “Today, Ms. Feiser has put a nail in her own political coffin,” he said.
“In that case, Interior Minister Nancy Pager should resign or be fired,” Steinhöfel told publisher Roland Teech.
This brave young journalist works for a raided and banned magazine.
His response to the raid? »Citizen journalism is alive«, and he quotes Trump: Fight, fight, fight! pic.twitter.com/VlN3U1qUv0
— Eric Λhrens (@erikahrens_ffm) July 16, 2024
I am one of the authors of the Compact and I am a libertarian. The Compact allowed for a wide range of opinions. Before the Compact was banned, I was in a Philippine prison for five months because the German authorities lied to the Philippine authorities about me. They said I was a fugitive…
— ❌ Oliver Janich (@OliverJanich) July 17, 2024
