Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Tom Cotton (R-AR) called on Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard to stop intelligence cooperation with Germany following the country’s crackdown on the populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party. Germany’s domestic intelligence service recently labeled the AfD a “right-wing extremist” group, triggering political and legal actions against its members, including civil servants and police officers.
The AfD, which recently surged to second place nationally and first in some polls, has built its platform on opposing mass migration, advocating for energy independence, and pushing economic reforms—stances increasingly resonating with German voters. Germany’s Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV) claimed the party promotes xenophobic rhetoric, using terms like “knife migrants,” and suggested AfD’s views are incompatible with Germany’s democratic order.
In his letter to Gabbard, Sen. Cotton warned that cooperating with Germany’s intelligence services amid their political targeting of AfD would implicate the U.S. in suppressing democratic opposition. Cotton argued the AfD’s popularity reflects legitimate public concern, not extremism, and compared Germany’s tactics to authoritarian overreach.
“Rather than trying to undermine the AfD using the tools of authoritarian states, Germany’s government might be better advised to consider why the AfD continues to gain electoral ground,” Cotton wrote. He urged the DNI to “pause the sharing of intelligence” that could aid German efforts to marginalize AfD members.
Cotton’s stance aligns with key members of the Trump administration, including Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Rubio condemned Germany’s new surveillance powers, calling them “tyranny in disguise.” Vance added that the German political establishment had “rebuilt the Berlin Wall” by trying to eliminate its most popular East German party.
Germany’s BfV cited the AfD’s positions on immigration, particularly regarding Muslim migrants, as justification for its extremist classification. The agency claims such views foster prejudice and incite hostility toward minorities.
A senior congressional source told Breitbart News that Cotton’s message was clear: the U.S. will not support European intelligence activities that echo the Obama-era surveillance abuses against President Trump’s 2016 campaign. Cotton’s move sends a strong signal to allies—political persecution of populist parties will come at a diplomatic price.
