Elon Musk's salute: 'Why are we even giving him the benefit of the doubt?'
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Elon Musk drew Nazi comparisons when he made a gesture at Donald Trump’s inauguration, but should he be judged on this, or his day-to-day involvement with the far-right?
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Read time: 4 mins
In brief…
- Elon Musk’s salute at Trump’s inauguration was seen by some as a Nazi signal, but has been defended by Benjamin Netanyahu and the Anti-Defamation League.
- The X owner has not addressed the controversy directly, and has instead made jokes about the backlash on social media.
- The News Agents says we are “almost past” the conversation over where Musk’s beliefs lie, and his interference in global politics is where he should face the most scrutiny.
What’s the story?
Amid everything that happened during, and since, Donald Trump's 2025 inauguration, there was one moment which has dominated the conversation.
And that is Elon Musk's salute during his speech on Monday at the Capitol One centre in Washington DC.
To many people, it was a Nazi salute, mimicking the actions of Adolf Hitler, and his Nazi supporters, in years since. To others, it was just a gesture, one worth little scrutiny and instead was simply a joke, a meme, a silly moment from the world's richest man.
Musk has been defended by Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu, saying the billionaire has been "falsely smeared", and has thanked him for supporting Israel in the year since the October 7 Hamas attack.
The Anti-Defamation League, set up to combat antisemitism, also saw no Nazi symbolism in Musk's salute, which he enacted twice, referring to it simply as an "awkward gesture".
A number of historians and holocaust experts have reacted in horror at the incident, with one calling it a "belligerent example" of the salute.
One popular, extreme right-wing nationalist commentator celebrated Musk's gesture, saying he was "loving the Hitler energy".
Musk has not denied these allegations, but instead made his own jokes about the incident, saying that the Nazi comparisons are simply "tired" attacks.
Lewis Goodall says he can believe either idea is credible, but Emily Maitlis asks why anyone is giving him the benefit of the doubt.
How can Elon Musk be judged?
Lewis says that there's one thing we know for sure about Elon Musk – that he's a "deeply weird, abnormal person."
"He's an odd guy. He jumps around the stage. He makes all of these very odd movements everywhere – particularly as he's not a very good speaker," he says.
"He often wants to show his kind of enthusiasm, his energy, his exuberance – and I can imagine that he might have just been flailing his limbs about in that way."
But, he adds, Musk has worked tirelessly with the right, and the far-right, on social media with increasing intensity over the past year – leading to no doubt over where his political views lie, it's just a case of knowing how extreme they really are.
"He has legitimised, restored to his platform, and consistently amplifies far-right messaging, far-right misinformation," Lewis says.
"We've seen the effect of that in our own country."
Not only has Musk infiltrated US politics at the highest level, in recent months he has turned his attention to the UK, attacking Keir Starmer, top UK politicians and the Labour government, and calling for the freedom of far-right extremist Tommy Robison.
"In a way, with the salute, although it's symbolic, and I think liberals often get obsessed with symbolism, in a way, to me, it's kind of neither here nor there," Lewis adds.
"The really important thing is what he does on a daily basis and how he pollutes the discourse – and we know he does that."
Emily says Musk is now "leaning into" the provocation he's stirred up over whether he is, or isn't, a Nazi supporter.
"We know his views are of the far right. He espouses the views of Tommy Robinson, and he has backed the AfD."
Extending his far-right views further into Europe, Musk has urged German voters to back Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) in upcoming elections.
"We're almost past that conversation, we know what we're dealing with," Emily adds.
What's The News Agents' take?
Jon Sopel says the most important thing, when it comes to Musk, is to judge him by his actions and interference when it comes to global politics – rather than only on what he did on the inauguration stage.
"He wants to say; 'Oh, look at the liberals. They're all losing their heads. They're all losing their shit over this.' He wants to create Musk derangement syndrome," Jon says.
"Judge him by what he does. He is the most powerful non-elected person in the world right now."
Despite no one having voted for Musk to have any political power, Jon believes he is now as powerful as Donald Trump, having the president's ear on many key decisions.
And, with his name mooted as a potential US buyer or part owner of TikTok, Lewis adds he's only set to extend his far-right influence even further.
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