The divergence between the right and the far-right is stark, perhaps exemplified most vividly in France by Marine Le Pen and the extremist party Rassemblement National.

…from 2015 to 2017, [Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old president of the far-right Rassemblement National party] used the pseudonym “RepNat du Gaito” on Twitter, now X, to share racist messages and celebrate Jean-Marie Le Pen, co-founder of the RN’s ancestor party the Front National (FN). The last post from that account, dated February 2017, is an obscene image mocking Théo Luhaka, a young Black man who suffered severe anal injuries from a police baton that year, in an assault for which three policemen are now on trial.

Twitter. Hold that thought.

On the right of center, one expects conservatism rooted in values unlikely to be changed, embracing open markets and closed nationalism. However, the far-right, epitomized by Le Pen’s party, takes a drastic step away from holding on to traditions towards permanent improvisation and disregard for law and order. It champions stringent immigration policies and exclusivity rhetoric that veer sharply away from democratic norms and towards dictatorship.

Here lies the chasm: while leaning right in politics means democratic principles are adhered to, the far-right threatens to end democracy, often advocating for exclusionary measures meant to harm marginalized groups and destroy regulatory integrity.

Le Pen’s Rassemblement National tries to blur lines with political camouflage in a fusion of conservative ideals and far-right nationalism, yet there’s no room for ambiguity with her love of dictatorship. It’s a reminder of the unmistakable contrast between upholding democratic values and venturing into the realm of extremism.

Back in 2022, someone in particular seemed to understand this bright line of extremism, the need to maintain the line, and tweeted about it without reservation.

And yet in 2024, after extensive evidence has surfaced of Elon Musk in communication with Nazi politicians in Germany, he now plays dumb by claiming suddenly to not understand what extreme or “far” right means.

Playing dumb in this context is rhetorical manipulation and deflection. False ignorance about what makes Le Pen “far” right means Elon Musk is downplaying and sanitizing her anti-democracy political positions.

It deflects attention away from the obviously controversial aspects of her extreme ideology, trying hard to make her appear less radical or alarming than she really is.

France’s Assemblée Nationale has banned a far-right MP from parliament for two weeks for a racist outburst after he shouted “Go back to Africa” when a black member of the lower house was speaking about migrants. Grégoire de Fournas, a member of the far-right Rassemblement National (RN), or National Rally, will also lose half his salary for two months… the most severe sanction available to the house. [House speaker] Braun-Pivet ordered the MP to leave the lower house on Friday. “We must not weaken our democracy,” she said.

Elon Musk’s tactic aims to create doubt or confusion, undermining the legitimacy of criticisms leveled against Le Pen and her party. By feigning ignorance, Musk wants the conversation to move away from substantive issues and towards minute technicalities in semantics, thereby avoiding a proper deeper examination of Le Pen’s horrible political beliefs and their dangerous implications.

1. Xenophobia and Racism: Le Pen and her party, Rassemblement National, are known for xenophobic and racist rhetoric. Their immigration hate speeches, often portrayed in terms of purity in French identity, are classified as discriminatory and exclusionary. Critics argue such rhetoric fosters division, intolerance and violent conflict within French society.
2. Authoritarianism: Another significant criticism of Le Pen is authoritarian tendencies. Her stance on security and law enforcement veer towards prioritizing control over individual liberties. Additionally, her advocacy for measures like the dissolution of certain institutions and the concentration of power in the executive branch are meant to erode democracy.
3. Economic Protectionism: Her party is characterized by protectionism and economic nationalism. Her proposals, such as withdrawing from the European Union and imposing trade barriers, would seriously harm the French economy by reducing international competitiveness and disrupting global trade relations. Moreover, her proposals to prioritize French companies and workers over foreign competitors are viewed as shortsighted and detrimental to long-term economic growth.

In contrast, Giorgia Meloni (leader of Fratelli d’Italia) has allegedly distanced her party from fascism and emphasized instead a commitment to democracy and rule of law. That being said, building ties with Le Pen undermines all of that. And the Financial Times looked at her and found “Meloni takes Italian far-right back to 1930s roots“, not to mention her open association with far-right extremist groups in America.

The part of this story where a Tesla erratically changes speed and veers, even trying to steer out of a PIT and keep going, seems like it might offer some Autopilot clues.

The callers told the dispatch that the Tesla was swerving in and out of its lane, changing its speed drastically, and nearly hit other drivers, an FHP arrest report said.

A trooper pursuing the vehicle said the Tesla even sideswiped a concrete wall and began speeding up to 80 mph when the trooper initiated a traffic stop.

“The vehicle was driving erratically all over the road, almost striking other motorists, which highlighted the need to get the vehicle stopped urgently,” the trooper wrote. “I [conducted] a PIT maneuver to stop the vehicle, but the driver steered out of it and kept going. I was forced to conduct a second, more aggressive PIT maneuver to finally get the vehicle stopped at northbound I-275 milepost 45.”

Note these points:

• Police described the owner as “just confused about what was going on” as if not driving the car
• The Tesla reportedly “was driving erratically… almost striking other motorists”. Almost. Not striking them. Just almost.
• The Tesla sped up to 80 when police flashed lights to initiate a stop, not quite evading them but rather trying to move forward as if they had just cleared the road ahead. Likewise they described the first PIT attempt as “steered out of it and kept going”

Architectural Record has posted a fascinating look at some of the reasons behind American housing shortages and high rates of harm to renters.

Why, then, did the U.S. embark upon a path so different from Europe’s? Quite simply, there was a radical divergence in fire-safety approaches during the 20th century and insufficient exchange of best practices. As Stephen Smith, director of the North American Center for Building, argues, American approaches aim to make combustible light wood-frame buildings easier to escape by providing multiple paths of egress; European codes, by contrast, require fire-resistant materials and compartmentation to prevent fires from spreading in the first place. Statistically, the evidence is clear: fire-death rates are consistently lower in Europe than in the U.S. and Canada.

Industry experts in law and AI safety have asked me to write about the fact Tesla lacks general counsel stability.

Apparently this is a canary, suggesting to outside observers that the company engages in illegal practices that no lawyer wants to be around. It is an interesting hypothesis to consider.

Notably, I looked at 2018 news from Reuters.

Tesla Inc has hired Dane Butswinkas, a Washington, D.C. trial lawyer, as its general counsel, the electric car manufacturer said late on Thursday.

Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk had hired Butswinkas to help settle a case with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Bloomberg had reported in October.

Musk and Tesla paid $20 million each in fines to settle the case, which stemmed from the billionaire CEO’s Twitter posts in August about taking the company private.

Butswinkas, the chairman of major Washington law firm Williams & Connolly, is replacing Todd Maron at Tesla.

Maron, who also served as Musk’s divorce lawyer, had led Tesla’s legal department since 2013.

Divorce lawyer? Elon Musk used his personal divorce lawyer, Todd Maron, to be Tesla’s general counsel? Kind of makes sense why he was bounced out when the SEC came knocking and investigations got real.

That Reuters report also points to a Tesla PR statement where Butswinkas says he joined for a big and important mission.

Tesla’s mission is bigger than Tesla – one that is critical to the future of our planet.

Sounds important.

Not exactly aligned with reality though. Musk was in deep trouble with fraud allegations and the SEC apparently looked ready to push over a personal divorce lawyer. Different mission, really.

That’s December 2018.

Then, basically after holiday break, when Butswinkas is only starting to warm his seat “critical to the future of our planet” and look around… he quits in January 2019.

Dane Butswinkas Resumes Trial Practice at Williams & Connolly. Williams & Connolly announced today that partner Dane Butswinkas will resume practicing law with the firm this month. Mr. Butswinkas has spent the past several months assisting Elon Musk and Tesla, Inc., first as outside counsel and most recently as General Counsel.

One month. How critical was that mission?

Consider also a total shift in tone when Butswinkas leaves, emphasizing being in a place called home around quality people regardless of any mission.

If home is where the heart is, then Williams & Connolly has always been my home. I’m grateful to the firm for its continuous support, and I now look forward to resuming my trial practice with my colleagues, clients, and long-time friends.

Subtle.

Reads to me like he’s throwing huge shade on Tesla being a shallow, empty and cruel place nobody would ever want to stay.

Then it becomes clear that Tesla can’t hire anyone, as the CEO’s personal divorce lawyer perhaps was covering up things? Or he let the CEO do things nobody else would?

Jonathan Chang, who had worked under the divorce lawyer, was quickly promoted. But by the end of that year, Chang was out too.

Then an Alan Prescott was hired. He lasted almost two years, basically rising to be named Tesla’s top lawyer right before he quits in 2021.

My lawyer colleagues and friends yell at me that this has so many red flags already, there has to be something very bad going on.

No?

General counsel folk don’t abruptly leave a job like this, I’m told. Three in a row, despite the positive narrative of Tesla to the public (e.g. market valuation)?

So then Tesla runs without anyone in the seat during massively ballooning valuations until two years later in 2023 when Brandon Ehrhart is named General Counsel (including a public statement that legal director Dinna Eskin, who journalists suspected of running things, would be pushed aside) to go “hardcore“.

Brandon Ehrhart is company’s sixth legal leader since late 2019

Seventh since early 2019?

I lost count.

That’s a huge turnover rate for the top lawyer job, unheard of and ringing alarm bells, capped with a shift to an aggressive outward prosecution and distraction model after crucial years of no transparency.

I’m not a lawyer, but I can understand why anyone looking at technology safety and the law would have some questions about what might be behind such turnover and new aggressive stance. Who has the answers?

Related: Tesla Whistleblowers Allege Books Cooked Since 2017