A social media firestorm ignited after some users compared Elon Musk’s hand gestures to a Nazi salute during his speech at the post-inauguration event of Donald Trump. The tech billionaire has responded to these claims, calling them ‘dirty tricks’. In an X (formerly Twitter) post, Musk wrote “Frankly, they need better dirty tricks”, adding “The “everyone is Hitler” attack is sooo tired 😴”.
The Tesla CEO said this while sharing a post by X user The Rabbit Hole @TheRabbitHole84 which Musk follows. In the post, the user wrote “The salute hoax is just another part of the “dirty tricks campaign”,” sharing an old post of Musk where he said:
“In the past I voted Democrat, because they were (mostly) the kindness party. But they have become the party of division & hate, so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican. Now, watch their dirty tricks campaign against me unfold …”.
Elon Musk’s controversial hand gesture video
The video in question has also been shared by Musk with the caption “My talk today at the Presidential Parade”. In the video, he opens his speech with the words, “This is what victory feels like,” while dancing and celebrating Trump’s win.
Adding further, Mush stated “This was no ordinary victory. This was a fork in the road of human civilization.” Expressing his gratitude, he added “Elections come and go, but this one really mattered. Thank you for making it happen! Thank you” while thumping his right hand over his heart and extending his arm upward with his palm facing downward and fingers pressed together. He then repeated the same heartfelt gesture toward the crowd behind him.
“My heart goes out to you. It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured,” Musk repeated after the gesture.