Donald Trump’s former chief strategist Steve Bannon accused of doing 'Nazi salute' during speech
21 February 2025, 15:48
Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, has been accused of giving a 'Nazi salute' during a speech.
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Bannon did the gesture while speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) on Thursday.
It came as he urged the audience to "fight, fight, fight", garnering a round of applause from those in attendance.
During his speech, Bannon called for Trump to run again for a third term in 2028.
He said "the only way we lose is if we quit" and that they will never "surrender".
Responding to the gesture, one person posted on X: "Steve Bannon, after calling for Trump to be President for life, did a Nazi salute on stage at CPAC.
"Nazism has officially taken over the GOP."
Another person said: "Steve Bannon definitely did a Nazi salute at CPAC. Vile."
A longer clip of ~1 minute before Steve Bannon made a gesture resembling a Nazi salute/sieg heil near the end of his CPAC speech today. pic.twitter.com/pEl3NlURYx
— Louis Keene (@thislouis) February 21, 2025
It comes after Elon Musk was also accused of doing a 'Nazi salute' during a celebration of Donald Trump's inauguration.
While addressing a crowd of MAGA supporters in January, he made a gesture putting his right hand on his chest before raising it in the air.
Then he turned and made the same hand gesture to the crowd behind him.
He drew intense criticism but defended his actions the following day, stating that his opponents needed "better dirty tricks" and that the "everyone is Hitler attack is sooo tired".
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), an organisation founded to combat anti-Semitism, said the gesture was “an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute".