Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Tesla and the social media platform X, has branded Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez a ‘tyrant and traitor to the people of Spain’ following Sánchez’s announcement of five new measures aimed at ending impunity for social-media companies and their executives, as well as protecting minors from online harm.
Musk made the remarks on X after reposting a message in which Sánchez set out the proposals, using the post to launch his attack. He also referred to the prime minister as ‘Dirty Sánchez’ – a phrase referencing a coprophilic sexual act – accompanied by a poop emoji.
In a separate repost, Musk added: ‘Sánchez is the true fascist totalitarian’.
Musk’s posts were part of a series that also lashed out French authorities that carried out police raids on the social media giant’s Paris offices over alleged political interference and sexual deepfakes.
On Tuesday, Sánchez presented a package of five initiatives designed to curb abuses by major digital platforms and guarantee a safer digital environment. As part of his remarks, the prime minister warned that ‘social networks have become a failed state in which laws are ignored, crimes are tolerated’. ALSO READ: Spain will seek to prohibit children aged under 16 from accessing social media.
One of the proposed measures directly affects Musk.
‘We will change the law in Spain to hold platform executives legally accountable for the many infringements taking place on their sites,’ the Spanish prime minister said. ‘This means that CEOs of these tech platforms will face criminal liability for failing to remove illegal or hateful content.’
Another initiative announced by Sánchez would criminalise the manipulation of algorithms and the amplification of illegal content. ALSO READ: Spanish government approves draft law to crack down on AI deepfakes and image misuse.
‘This is something created, promoted, and disseminated by certain actors whom we will investigate, as well as the platforms whose algorithms amplify disinformation for profit. Hiding behind code and claiming technology is neutral is over,’ he said.
Australia established a world first in December when it banned young teenagers from some of the world’s most popular platforms, including Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
France and Portugal have also sought to follow suit. Spain has joined Denmark, Greece and France in leading a push for similar action across the European Union.
Tensions between Musk and Sánchez have risen in recent days. The two exchanged remarks on X after Musk reposted a message by a right-wing influencer that described Spain’s planned mass regularisation of undocumented migrants as ‘electoral engineering’, reacting simply with the comment: ‘Wow.’
Sánchez responded with: ‘Mars can wait. Humanity can’t,’ a reference to Musk’s long-standing ambition of sending humans to other planets. ALSO READ: Sánchez to Musk: ‘Mars can wait. Humanity can’t’ – in defence of Spain’s migrant policy.
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Sánchez is the true fascist totalitarian https://t.co/b2U17fEwa7
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 3, 2026
Dirty Sánchez is a tyrant and traitor to the people of Spain 💩 https://t.co/B3oyHrBYpR
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 3, 2026
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