Fake Elon Musk Post Fictionalizes His Response to Nazi Salute Accus@tions | HO

Musk’s response to the accusations has included the complaint that the “legacy media” is trying to cancel him.

(Getty Images and X user @golub)

Image courtesy of Getty Images and X user @golub

Claim: Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded to accusations that he gave a Nazi salute with an explanation on X that said MAGA will “succeed in all the ways Nazi Germany failed to.”

Rating: Fake

About this rating

Elon Musk's salute stirs controversy in Congress and criticism in Europe - The Washington Post

While speaking at a rally celebrating President Donald Trump’s inauguration on Jan. 20, 2025, Tesla CEO Elon Musk twice briskly extended his arm from his chest in a manner many people saw as a “Nazi salute,” saying: “My heart goes out to you. It is thanks to you that the future of civilization is assured, thanks to you.”

Two days later, what appeared to be a screenshot of an X post by Musk (archived) circulated online, receiving more than 439,000 views and 10,000 likes, as of this writing. The screenshot in the post read:

What can I say? I got caught up in the moment. But it wasn’t a “seig heil.” Why would I pledge allegiance to a nation 80 years dead? Why would I lionize a subdued and failed state? MAGA is the future, and will, in fact, succeed in all the ways Nazi Germany failed to

(X account @golub)

Some users commenting in response to the post appeared to believe the screenshot was authentic. However, Musk did not post this message. There is no evidence on his account that he wrote those words or responded to the accusations that he gave a “Nazi salute” with such an explanation.

Searching the keyword “Germany” on his X account did not bring up any posts similar to the one in the purported screenshot.

Musk did respond to the accusations in several different posts. In one, he wrote: “It was astonishing how insanely hard legacy media tried to cancel me for saying ‘my heart goes out to you’ and moving my hand from my heart to the audience. In the end, this deception will just be another nail in the coffin of legacy media.”

In sum, because we found no evidence the post in the purported screenshot was real, we rate this claim as fake.