Elon Musk has recently refuted rumors sparked by a contentious gesture he made during the inauguration of the newly instated US President, Donald Trump. This stemmed from a video post by popular British comedian, Jimmy Carr, on a social media platform, X, in which he assessed Musk’s contentious salute as the latter stepped up to the podium at the Capital One Arena based in Washington DC.
Carr, in his short stand-up comedy routine humorously titled ‘What do I think of Elon Musk?’, prompted an inquisitional debate among his strong 6.4 million fanbase: ‘Did anyone view the inauguration? So there are floating rumors suggesting Elon Musk displayed a Nazi salute. The bulk of the online conversation revolves around – Is Elon Musk affiliated with the Nazis? Could it be that Elon Musk is an autism spectrum individual?’ After these speculative statements, the audience could be heard laughing in the background.
The comedian, aged 52, continued jokingly, playing with his comic allure: “Could he possibly embody both circumstances?” He further added a comparison with a light tone: “It’s interesting to observe a lot of intersectionality – between individuals with autism and Nazis. Both communities seem to share a love for trains.” Following this, Carr decided to set the record straight: “To clear all misconceptions, Elon Musk is not by any stretch a Nazi. The moment an anomaly presents itself, the internet is quick to label the anomaly as ‘he’s a Nazi’. The man is a genius.”
Further into the conversation, Carr mentioned a comedic friend of his, Neal Brennan, who managed to articulate Musk’s character in the most rational manner during his last special titled, Crazy Good. According to his amusing analogy, if you happen to be a genius, there’s bound to be a small seasoning of eccentricity that accompanies the package. He affirmed that although Musk exhibits traits of unusual behavior, he’s no Nazi.
Alan Carr, another comedian, shared his personal experiences with the influential billionaire and owner of platform X, Musk. He commented on Musk’s demeanor on a human level, stating: “He’s a decent guy, based on my interaction with him. He was quite pleasant and had a great sense of humor. Wait a minute, let me validate my claims. I’ll upload this on X, and I’m sure there won’t be any backlash. However, if I vanish abruptly, you know who is responsible.”
The ever-so charismatic billionaire, aged 53, who helms key enterprises such as Tesla and SpaceX and currently holds the designation of the world’s richest man, responded to Carr’s jest in good spirits. Musk reacted by posting a laughing emoji with tears in its eyes on Carr’s video.
Musk’s albeit innocent actions did not go unnoticed as his gesture at the inauguration sparked a wave of reactions. Upon placing a hand over his chest before extending an open palm twice during his speech on January 20, many deemed the act to be a fascist salute tied historically to Nazi greetings for Adolf Hitler. Musk’s move was greeted with a series of mixed reviews on his own social media site, X.
The ambiguity of the intention behind Musk’s gesture led to speculation among users on his social media site, resulting in a variety of interpretations. Responses varied dramatically, ranging from questions like: “Did Musk just make a Hitler salute?” to disbelief-ridden statements such as: “Incredible, Elon Musk just publicly displayed the Nazi salute… at the president’s inauguration.” There were some observers who concluded: “Elon Musk quite nonchalantly performed a Hitler salute for millions.” Yet, there were others who suggested the act could have been done unthinkingly, to connect more deeply with the audience.
After these allegations surfaced, an account by the name of The Rabbit Hole on the social media platform X, re-shared a tweet Musk had made prior to the US elections. The tweet read, “In the past, I’ve mostly supported Democrats, attributing them to be the party of kindness. However, lately they’ve transformed into the party of division and hatred. As a result, I have distanced myself from them and will now lend my support to the Republicans. Watch out now, as they attempt to slander me with a series of deceit…”
The Rabbit Hole surmised that the claim of Musk performing a ‘salute’, perceived as a ‘hoax’, was simply another instance of the ‘manipulative ploys’ that Musk had spoken about earlier. Upon coming across this interpretation, Musk shared the post with his own note, lamenting about the lack of innovation in the smear techniques used against him: “I’d say, they really should come up with newer manipulative schemes. The ‘everyone is Hitler’ tactic is simply getting worn-out.”