Liberal media outlets accused Elon Musk of giving a “fascist salute” at President Trump’s inauguration rally on Monday.
“This is what victory feels like! And this was no ordinary victory, this was a fork in the road for human civilization… I just want to say thank you for making it happen, thank you. From my heart to yours,” an ebullient Musk, 53, told the roaring crowd of MAGA faithful at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. The SpaceX CEO reached out to the crowd and placed his hand over his own heart as he spoke.
CNN hosts Erin Burnett and Kasie Hunt played the clip of the gesture and appeared to insinuate Musk had just delivered a Nazi salute.
“That salute was evocative of things we’ve seen through history,” Hunt said.
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Burnett called Musk’s gesture an “odd salute.”
“It’s not something you typically see at American political rallies,” Hunt continued.
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PBS News Hour fired out a post on X that said the Tesla CEO “gave what appeared to be a fascist salute.”
“I never imagined we would see the day when what appears to be a Heil Hitler salute would be made behind the Presidential seal,” Rep. Jerry Nadler posted on X.
The Jerusalem post wrote, “US billionaire Elon Musk appeared to make a Heil Hitler salute at the Washington DC Trump parade on Monday, following Trump’s inauguration.”
In Nov. 2023 the tech billionaire took a highly publicized trip to Israel where he toured the carnage left in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attacks. Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu urged him to crack down on antisemitism on X during his visit.
However, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) issued a statement defending Musk, saying that he had made an “awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute.”
“In this moment, all sides should give each one another a bit of grace, perhaps even the benefit of the doubt and take a breath,” the statement said.
