Vivian Wilson, the estranged daughter of billionaire Elon Musk on Tuesday addressed accusations surrounding her father’s alleged “Nazi salute” during a rally at the Capitol one arena shortly after Donald Trump‘s inauguration.
The talks around ‘salute’ began when Musk, a vocal supporter of the former president, was seen slapping his chest and extending his arm stiffly twice in succession during the rally. Critics likened the gesture to the fascist salutes used by Benito Mussolini and Adolf Hitler, while supporters dismissed it as a misinterpretation.
Wilson, who legally changed her name upon turning 18 to sever ties with Musk, appeared to reference the incident in a series of posts on Instagram’s Threads platform.
While not directly naming her father, Wilson’s comments heavily hinted at her reaction to the controversy, as the Independent reported.
“I’m just gonna say let’s call a spade a f***ing spade,” Wilson wrote. “Especially if there were two spades done in succession based on the reaction of the first spade.”
Musk dismissed the backlash, calling the accusations baseless. “My critics need better dirty tricks,” he said. “Attacking political opponents as Adolf Hitler is sooo tired.”
Wilson later addressed claims circulating on social media that Musk’s gesture might be attributed to his autism, offering a pointed critique. “I don’t know why y’all are reacting with such vigor, I’m clearly only talking about card suits,” she wrote sarcastically. “After all, there’s no proof I’m not just talking about card suits. People assuming otherwise just goes to show how dishonest people/the media can be.”
In a final post, Wilson suggested the act was deliberate but designed to maintain plausible deniability. “For those who can read between the lines, do y’all understand how f***ing easy this is to do? Plausible deniability, honey. Just saying.”
Meanwhile, Musk lashed out at Wikipedia co-founders on Tuesday for including references to the controversial salute in his biography.
The billionaire father of 12 has faced scrutiny for his public comments and political alliances.