Billionaire Elon Musk, Trump’s “First Buddy,” gives Nazi salute twice during speech at Trump’s inaugural celebration

Billionaire Elon Musk, who spent $277 million to get Trump elected and who publicly declared himself Trump’s “First Buddy” in a November 11, 2024 tweet, gave a Nazi salute not once but twice during his talk at Trump’s inaugural celebration at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. on January 20, 2025 [Video clip: PBS]

Musk, who is facing global criticism over the gesture, has not explicitly denied it was a Nazi salute. Instead he dismissed the criticism as a “tired” attack, writing on his social media platform that “The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is sooo tired.”

Right wing extremists celebrated Musk’s use of gesture.

It is illegal to perform this gesture in Germany.

In an article by investigative reporter Bernard Condon posted January 21 on Associated Press, Kurt Braddock, a professor of communication at American University who studies extremism, radicalization and terrorism, said the gesture was a fascist salute and that “people shouldn’t doubt what they saw.”

Members of the Hitler Youth in Berlin performing the Nazi salute at a rally in 1933 (Photo: Wikipedia)

 

A mass “Sieg Heil” Nazi salute at a rally in Berlin in 1935 (Photo: Wikipedia)

 

A far-right protester gives a Nazi salute at the “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville during 2017. (Photo: Wikipedia)

 

 

 

  22 comments for “Billionaire Elon Musk, Trump’s “First Buddy,” gives Nazi salute twice during speech at Trump’s inaugural celebration

  1. This was obviously a diversionary tactic.

    The Trump administration is busy making the sorts of substantive changes that were promised to the voters and you silly people are busy trying to make sure everyone knows Elon Musk did the Nazi salute.

    Carry on!

    • Badhatharry, I could care less whether he’s a Nazi. Dude’s weird and goofy and I don’t use Twitter. HOWEVER. Musk is the recipient and beneficiary of massive government contracts and is in charge of major communication systems upon which the government and the citizens are dependent upon. Now, Elon has an office next to Trump. He’s the fox guarding the hen house. It is corruption, and it doesn’t matter who did what when, it doesn’t matter what Biden did, it doesn’t matter what anyone did, Musk is in charge of a non-existent government office making decisions despite not being elected. I miss the old-school fiscal conservatives that didn’t allow this sort of stuff, and I’m confused as to why you don’t seem to care. You really believe Trump and his pets are there to serve?

      • I dont know much/anything about Musk…except some say he’s a genuis. Maybe you can tell me about the communications contracts he holds that we are dependent on. I would genuinely like to know.

        I don’t see a difference between any DC bureaucracy and DOGE i think it may fall under OMB, so its not without scrutiny. Again maybe you can enlighten me about the danger. I very much like the idea of making the government smaller.

        I like what Musk did with X…although I don’t use it.
        Through the transparency he allowed, lots of mind-blowing government malfeasance was uncovered. If that’s all he ever does…he’s worth the trouble and that’s why I naturally like him.
        I love the conversations that have ensued because of the opinions of elon and vivek about the H2 visa program.This is the kind of conversation that we need and should all engage in.
        At this point, conservatives are not afraid to speak out because the environment is such that it’s possible.

        I’m still a Thomas Sowell conservative at heart. I think we all hold these ideals. Maybe the world will be ready for them some day.

      • This forum is hard to manage. All of a sudden you run out of the ability to reply.

        I read two of the articles Yep posted. One from the Guardian and the other from Yahoo.
        I agree that the facts presented are concerning. From what the articles say, Musk will have the power to affect regulating agencies by reducing staff and might be able to avoid 18USC208 by not being a federal employee. It’s not clear how his recommendations will actuate.

        There are lots of other red flags here. I’m glad to know about them.

        So…what do we do with red flags? If we had an intelligent press we could rely on them to wave them. If they weren’t so consumed with nonsense like whether Musk was saluting Hitler or whether Trump is a sexual predator or a convicted felon, maybe we could rest easy.

        But that is not the case. We need to “do our own research”…always with the Thomas Sowell’s admonition that man is not perfect nor perfectible. We need to talk to each other as Yep has done. This isn’t really any different that the way it’s always been…only X 10. But it’s endlessly interesting.

        • Here we go again…I am replying to Yep’s post that starts like this…”part of the reason”.
          So…when Musk bought Twitter, the value of the stock didn’t go up? Didn’t know that.
          They couldn’t sell because why?
          Of course when the value went down it would have been stupid to sell unless you thought the downward trend would continue. People get out of losing propositions all the time. And sometimes if they stay in they win in the long run.

          “Can we acknowledge that people lost millions on a brazen, ill-informed purchase of a disgusting platform, right?”

          I can’t acknowledge that and I certianly have no sympathy for the investors.

          It would be great if you backed off of the adhominum approach…suggesting I’m being disingenuous. You are one of the only intelligent people on this forum and it would be great to continue discussing issues, but you need to get over the idea that people who don’t agree with you aren’t being sincere.

    • There are over 7 million Jewish people in the US, not to mention all the other groups the Nazis tried to eradicate.

      And you think this was a cool move?

      Why am I not surprised?

      There really is no low “too low” for you.

      • I was being “ironic”, toolbag.

        And the irony is while you all are so busy smelling your navels and thinking deep thoughts, no one is paying attention

        • You weren’t being “ironic”, coward.
          There’s no irony in you crowing triumphantly about a vile human being throwing a Nazi salute, and you pretending it’s just a distraction for people rightfully offended.

          This is who you are.

          • From how it appears on this forum, it seems that your whole life is about being rightfully offended…so much so that it’s hard to take any of it seriously.
            Anne has the same trait.

            • I’m not offended personally. I don’t like bullies, and I don’t like spineless wannabe bullies, like yourself.

              You have a pattern – you come out with a badass stance, usually posting something about Trump or some other vile hero of yours, saying or doing something you wish you could do, and proclaiming your glee at the responses. Then, when anyone calls you on it, you back off and snivel, “It’s a joke, I’m being ironic, look how they’re triggering you people”.

              As I’ve pointed out before, you’re not the actual direct action “bully” type. Everyone can see the type you are.

  2. Of course it was a Nazi salute; thumped his chest/shoulder area and threw the ol’ Sieg Heil. Actual Nazis and garden-variety white supremacists are pleased, casual racists and those too cowardly to admit they liked it (in public) will deny and deflect.

  3. It was a Fascist siege Heil salute, for sure, but the first foreign-born president thinks he/she can do anything. I sure hope the GOP censures him.

  4. I don’t doubt what I saw one bit. Of course it was a Nazi salute. Everyday it’s some sort of chaos with tRump. Our country has descended into one heaping pile of garbage. We’re looked upon as a joke to the rest of the world and rightfully so!

  5. Again Anne..truth here…
    There is a GOD and this is HIStory…Trump IS the Anti-christ..get it?
    Love the times we are living in! Bible prophecy being achieved!!
    I can’t wait until we are all hungry…there ya go. Quit, involving yourself in the Devils agenda.

  6. I am convinced that it was a deliberate Nazi salute because Musk is too media-savvy and too smart to claim ignorance. And perhaps the biggest thing is that he actually did not deny the reports that it was a Nazi salute; he only mocked the criticism. Anyone else would simply say, ‘Absolutely not, and I apologize if anyone has seen it that way.’ Anyone else would be horrified by the idea that their gesture could have been perceived as a Nazi salute. Not Musk.

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