X owner Elon Musk unintentionally made an offensive gesture while speaking during President Donald Trump’s inauguration and folks on the left are gleefully jumping on the opportunity to partake in one of their favorite activities: Calling Trump supporters Nazis.
While giving his speech, a hyped-up Musk made a gesture that resembled the “Heil Hitler” salute. “This is what victory feels like!” he declared, celebrating Trump’s electoral win. “I just want to say thank you for making it happen,” he told the audience. “From my heart to yours!”
Elon Musk: “my heart goes out to you”
— 🎩Laird of the Manor🎩 (@LairdOfTheManor) January 21, 2025
CNN: “ Elon Musk is a Nazi”.
The legacy media is actively and purposefully misleading. Elon Musk never did a Nazi salute. Watch the full video: He simply gestured and said, “Thank you, my heart goes out to you.”
Legacy Media is to news… pic.twitter.com/M92JXLj2uX
While Musk’s gesture did somewhat resemble the Nazi salute, it is clear he was simply placing his hand over his heart and giving it to the audience, not expressing solidarity with the Third Reich. Nevertheless, despite never having given an indication that he is sympathetic to the Nazis, leftists pounced, insinuating that Musk is secretly a superfan of Adolf Hitler.
However, the Anti-Defamation League, which has clashed with Musk in the past, wrote a post on X defending him.
This is a delicate moment. It’s a new day and yet so many are on edge. Our politics are inflamed, and social media only adds to the anxiety.
It seems that @elonmusk made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute, but again, we appreciate that people are on edge.
In this moment, all sides should give one another a bit of grace, perhaps even the benefit of the doubt, and take a breath. This is a new beginning. Let’s hope for healing and work toward unity in the months and years ahead.
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This statement did not sit well with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), who accused the organization of “defending a Heil Hitler salute that was performed and repeated for emphasis and clarity.”
Just to be clear, you are defending a Heil Hitler salute that was performed and repeated for emphasis and clarity.
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) January 21, 2025
People can officially stop listening to you as any sort of reputable source of information now. You work for them. Thank you for making that crystal clear to all. https://t.co/0gLdMCU3UV
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) wrote a post in which he said he “never imagined we would see the day when what appears to be a Heil Hitler salute would be made behind the Presidential seal.”
I never imagined we would see the day when what appears to be a Heil Hitler salute would be made behind the Presidential seal. This abhorrent gesture has no place in our society and belongs in the darkest chapters of human history. I urge all of my colleagues to unite in… https://t.co/WDgReK1gey
— Rep. Nadler (@RepJerryNadler) January 20, 2025
The matter even made it to the Senate, where Sen. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) also defended the X owner. “No, Elon Musk did not do those salutes. I was not at the rally, but I can tell you I've been at many rallies with Elon Musk, who loves to cheer when President Trump says we need to send our US space program to Mars,” she said, also affirming that she is “looking forward to his work in DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency.”
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) countered Stefanik’s remarks, noting how several fringe right-wing figures applauded Musk’s gesture.
Let me share with you what a few Americans have said about it. Evan Kilgore, a right-wing political commentator, wrote on X, ‘Holy crap, did Elon Musk just Heil Hitler at the Trump inauguration rally. This is incredible. We are so back.’ Andrew Torba, who's the founder of the right-wing Christian Nationalist Social Platform, Gab, said ‘incredible things are happening.’ As he as he amplified the visual. The Proud Boys chapter in Ohio posted the clip on a Telegram channel with the text, ‘Heil Trump.’ A chapter of the White Nationalist Group, White Lives Matter, posted it on Telegram. ‘Thanks for hearing us, Elon. The white flame will rise again.’ I could keep going. Over and over last night, white supremacist groups and neo-nazi groups in this country rallied around that visual.
Democratic Senator Chris Murphy destroyed Elise Stefanik, Donald Trump's pick for U.N. Ambassador, who was trying to minimize Elon Musk's Nazi salute.
— Art Candee 🍿🥤 (@ArtCandee) January 21, 2025
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥pic.twitter.com/8hM91JBV3R
Still, Musk has not affiliated himself with Nazis, contrary to what many on the left have falsely claimed. It’s clear that this is a case of opportunistic Democrats jumping on a chance to score some cheap political points against the ally of one of their most feared opponents.
However, there is another problem with leftists lashing out at Musk. If you’re reading this, you’re probably old enough to remember the outbreak of pro-Hamas protesters taking to the streets and college campuses to protest against Israel and spew their antisemitic nonsense after the terrorist group massacred Israeli civilians on October 7, 2023.
Indeed, these people have marched in the streets shouting, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” which is a chant used by those who seek to eliminate the Jewish people in Judea and Samaria. But their activities have not been limited to simply marching and screaming.
In several cases, pro-Hamas operatives have targeted Jewish people with violence and threats – especially on college campuses. In one instance, a pro-Hamas thug stabbed a Jewish student in the eye with a Palestinian flag during a demonstration.
Perhaps if folks on the left want to find Jew-hating Nazis, they only need to look inward and condemn those who openly support terrorism against Jewish civilians. But that would require some intellectual honesty, which is severely lacking on the hard left.
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