Elon Musk, one of the world’s wealthiest and most successful entrepreneurs, is an enthusiastic supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump. He’s part of the second Trump presidential administration, serving as administrator for the newly created Department of Government Efficiency.
When Musk spoke at Monday’s Presidential Parade at the Capital One Arena, he was overjoyed. He was smiling, holding up his hands triumphantly and dancing a bit of a jig while AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” played in the background. It’s not something you typically see at a political rally, but there’s nothing wrong with this. His side won, so why shouldn’t he be in a celebratory mood?
By the time Musk finished, some people suggested he had done something reprehensible. They claimed he had flashed a fascist salute on stage — not once, but twice. Short clips spread like wildfire, and accusations of fascism, neo-Nazism and antisemitism followed.
Here’s the thing: there wasn’t a kernel of truth to it.
The full video of this short speech is widely available on the Internet. Musk reposted a link on X (formerly Twitter), the social media platform he owns. Watch the entire thing. You’ll see that Musk clearly puts his hand from his heart out to the cheering crowd, tells them, “My heart goes out to you,” and puts his hand back on his heart once more.
That’s neither a fascist salute, nor the actions of a neo-Nazi in disguise. If you actually think otherwise after watching it, you need glasses — or, if you have them, a new prescription — and to stop listening to left-wing rantings and ravings on social media.
Here’s the truth. Musk has long been supportive of Jews and Israel. He travelled to Israel in November 2023, met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, and toured a kibbutz attacked by the bloodthirsty terrorist organization Hamas. He also went with U.S. conservative commentator Ben Shapiro in Janurary 2024 to tour Auschwitz-Birkenau, the former Nazi concentration camp during the Second World War, and was visibly moved by the experience.
Oh, but his lefty critics will argue, there were mitigating reasons for this. Musk had been criticized for linking to controversial tweets in November 2023 that appeared to suggest the promotion of white nationalist and anti-Semitic themes. Plus, the Anti-Defamation League accused him of criticizing billionaire financier George Soros in a May 2023 tweet. Jonathan Greenblatt, its CEO, argued that Musk’s comment would “embolden extremists,” since “Soros often is held up by the far-right, using antisemitic tropes, as the source of the world’s problems.”
Musk, to his credit, apologized for retweeting the controversial post and described it as “literally the worst and dumbest post that I’ve ever done.” There’s some validity in suggesting that far-left and even moderately left-leaning Jews have vocally criticized religious Christians and evangelical groups for decades, which is obviously offensive. Linking it to extremist theories was a mistake, and he’s moved past it.
As for criticizing Soros, this is a long-standing left-wing trope by the ADL and others. It’s not antisemitic to go after the Jewish financier, who’s given billions of dollars to left-wing parties and political action committees, progressive causes like abortion and gun control, and U.S. elections through the Democratic Party. Soros also made controversial remarks during a 60 Minutes interview in Dec. 1998. He acknowledged to Steve Kroft that he accompanied his “protector” during the confiscation of property of Hungarian Jews during the Second World War, and claimed that it created “no problem at all” or feelings of guilt. Soros, like everyone, is not beyond reproach. (Of interest, the ADL recently said Musk’s “awkward gesture” was “not a Nazi salute.”)
Musk’s critics have also attacked him for promoting two right-leaning European parties, Germany’s Alternative for Germany and Britain’s Reform UK. Both parties have good and bad economic policies, as well as party members and leaders who have made controversial remarks. Musk is surely aware of this and his view may evolve over time, but his voting intentions and financial donations, whatever we may think of them, are his own.
This is yet another example of the Left attempting to tar and feather someone they don’t like. They’ve been doing this for years in the guise of political correctness, woke ideology, diversity, equity and inclusion policies and more. They conned many dim-witted individuals to buy into this rubbish for a spell. The recent backlash against these ideas, including Trump’s victory, is evident. Many people have had enough of this nonsense, and aren’t going to take it anymore.
Neither is the free speech-loving Musk. A former Democrat, he speaks his mind and promotes libertarian and conservative ideas that make sense to him. This drives the political left nuts, and they lashed out against him with false claims of making a fascist salute. He doesn’t seem to care. “The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is sooo tired,” he posted on Jan. 20.
I couldn’t agree more. Although I left the Jewish faith over 40 years ago, I have a good idea of what a Nazi and antisemite looks and sounds like. It’s not Elon Musk.
National Post