MAGA-aligned U.S. Representative Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) is being criticized for congratulating members of the far right political party, Alternative for Germany (AfD), which won a landslide victory on Sunday in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt.
[NOTE: AfD has a policy focus on opposing Islam, opposing immigration into Germany, and supporting closer relations with Russia.]
Luna wrote on social media: “Congratulations to our friends at @AfD for a massive victory! @UlrichSiegmund and @Alice_Weidel well done!”
With her praise, Luna is echoing the sentiments of President Donald Trump, who posted the results of the pro-Russia party’s win in Saxony-Anhalt on social media, while his son-in-law, billionaire real estate developer Jared Kushner, met with Vladimir Putin on Sunday and then met with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy to reportedly discuss “new ideas” regarding a peace deal.
Former California GOP chairman Ron Nehring replied to Luna, “They are not our friends, and in fact are a deeply anti-American party.”
They are not our friends, and in fact are a deeply anti-American party. https://t.co/ICjG8xwYsl
— Ron Nehring (@RonNehring) September 7, 2026
[NOTE: Nehring served as Senator Ted Cruz‘s (R-TX) spokesman when Cruz ran for president in 2016, and was the GOP nominee for Lt. Governor of California in 2014. He lost to the incumbent, Gavin Newsom.]
Gunter Fehlinger-Jahn, chairman of The Austrian Committee for NATO Enlargement, who is running to become President of Austria in 2028, replied to Nehring, “They are the ‘AMI Go HOME’ party.”
[NOTE: “Ami, go home!” is a political slogan that was popular in Soviet-era East Germany, with Ami being shorthand for Americans. It signaled opposition to the presence of American military forces.]
They are the “AMI Go HOME” party.
— Gunther Fehlinger-Jahn (@GunterFehlinger) September 7, 2026
U.S. outlet NBC News reported after the election: “AfD in Saxony-Anhalt pledges to ban schools from officially raising the rainbow flag, which it says ‘stands for the devaluation of the family,’ and ensure they fly the national flag. It opposes taxpayers’ money being ‘given away’ to Ukraine and says it would push to lift sanctions against Russia.”