'One big psy op': Musk rips liberal media for hypocrisy over Cory Booker's 'Nazi salute'



Democratic Senator Cory Booker (N.J.) gave a fiery speech on Saturday at the California Democratic Party's 2025 state convention in Anaheim. Following his remarks, the senator pressed his hand to his heart, then extended it in a salute to the crowd.

Whereas Democrats and elements of the liberal media previously expressed horror at the sight of Elon Musk making the exact same gesture during a speech in January — some characterizing it as a Nazi salute — they did not appear similarly troubled when Booker did the same thing.

Musk joined Republicans and other critics in highlighting the selective outrage over the weekend, noting, "Fate loves irony, but hates hypocrisy."

A tale of two salutes

Musk gave an excited speech in January at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C., following President Donald Trump's second inauguration.

— (@)

"This was no ordinary victory. This was a fork in the road of human civilization," said Musk, who previously admitted to having Asperger's, a syndrome on the autism spectrum. "This one really mattered. Thank you for making it happen!"

The billionaire then slammed his chest, then saluted both the crowd and the American flag, adding, "My heart goes out to you."

Some of the media outfits and Democrats who previously painted Trump and his allies as fascists in the lead-up to the election seized on the gesture as confirmation of their fears.

Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) stated that "regardless of any justification, his salute last night at Donald Trump's inauguration rally can only be interpreted as a Seig [sic] Heil salute that is synonymous with Nazi support for Hitler."

"Jews around the world are scared because of the contemptible rise in antisemitism, and Musk's conduct only increases the problem," continued Goldman. "Musk must issue an immediate apology, and President Trump must disavow and denounce his actions."

'All sides should give one another a bit of grace.'

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy (Conn.) claimed on MSNBC, "Elon Musk did [the] heil Hitler salute. He did. And of course he did."

Democratic Socialist Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York claimed that it was a "Heil Hitler salute that was performed and repeated for emphasis and clarity."

RELATED: Southern Poverty Law Center attacks Turning Point USA with 'cheap smear' in latest hysterical 'extremism' report

Photo (left): DON EMMERT/AFP via Getty Images; Photo (right): ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images

The media similarly feigned horror and characterized the gesture as a Nazi salute. For instance:

Musk noted at the time, "Frankly, they need better dirty tricks. The 'everyone is Hitler' attack is sooo tired."

Despite the apparent eagerness on the left to frame Musk as a Nazi, some proved willing to admit that the narrative was bogus.

The Anti-Defamation League, for instance, stated that Musk "made an awkward gesture in a moment of enthusiasm, not a Nazi salute."

"In this moment, all sides should give one another a bit of grace, perhaps even the benefit of the doubt, and take a breath," added the ADL.

Hypocrisy

Booker spoke Saturday at a convention attended by California Democrats including Sen. Adam Schiff and Rep. Robert Garcia. Garcia was among those who condemned Musk for his gesture earlier this year.

"Real change does not come from Washington. It comes from communities. It comes from the streets," said Booker. "It comes from the people who's standing up and have shown over and over again — against the powerful, against the elected, against the rich — that the power of the people is greater than the people in power."

Booker made the Musk-styled heartfelt gesture after whipping up the crowd, then walked off stage.

Footage of Booker's gesture made the rounds online, prompting comparisons between his gesture and the one previously made by Musk. Critics, observing that the gesticulations were virtually identical, suggested that the absence of pearl-clutching and condemnations from the media or Democrats this time around was further evidence of their hypocrisy and double standards.

Libs of TikTok, for instance, noted that when Musk made the gesture, Newsweek ran an article titled "80 Years After Auschwitz, Elon Musk Keeps the Fascist Salute Alive," but painted Booker as a man wrongfully accused in an article titled "MAGA Accuses Democratic Senator Cory Booker of Doing 'Nazi Salute.'"

'The mainstream media is totally corrupt.'

Newsweek performed some mental gymnastics in its coverage of the reaction to Booker's gesture, writing that "the gesture is similar to the ones made by Musk and Bannon but not made as forcefully, the video shows."

"Pure trash propaganda," wrote Libs of TikTok.

Musk responded, "Legacy media like Newsweek lie relentlessly."

"Here's a list of all the news networks who have not covered Cory Booker's salute: - NYTimes - CNN - Washington Post - MSNBC - NPR - USA Today - Reuters - Axios - ABC News," wrote former nuclear scientist for the Department of Energy Matt Van Swol. "Every single one of them wrote stories on Elon Musk's 'salute' … … do you get it yet?"

"Legacy media is one big psy op," responded Musk.

RELATED: Trump commends Elon Musk as he departs from DOGE: 'Americans owe him a great debt of gratitude'

Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) tweeted, "The mainstream media is totally corrupt."

"In January, Democrats and the Left were hyperventilating about this false smear of Elon and the stenographers in the media went to work," wrote Stefanik.

"Neither Elon Musk or @CoryBooker are giving the Nazi salute. Americans see thru this obvious and destructive double standard by the totally broken media and Democrat Party."

"If Elon Musk is a Nazi for doing this gesture ... Cory Booker is one too," wrote Angela Belcamino, host of "Last Week on X." "Sorry, I don't make the rules."

A spokeswoman for Booker suggested in a statement to Forbes that Booker's gesture was somehow different from Musk's, writing, "Cory Booker was obviously just waving to the crowd. Anyone who claims his wave is the same as Elon Musk’s gesture is operating in bad faith. The differences between the two are obvious to anyone without an agenda."

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Former hostage of Iran calls out Cory Booker for hypocritical outrage over migrant deported to Salvadoran prison



An American who had been a hostage of Iran called out the hypocrisy of Democrat Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey for hopping into action for a migrant from El Salvador after previously ignoring the man's captivity.

Booker excoriated the Trump administration over the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an accused MS-13 gang member who was deported to an infamous terrorist prison in El Salvador. Xiyue Wang claims that Booker did nothing for him while he was held hostage in Iran.

'Booker never advocated for my release & refused to speak to my wife.'

"The Supreme Court ruled 9-0 that the Trump administration must facilitate the return of Kilmar Abrego Garcia," wrote Booker on social media. "The story of his detainment is horrifying, all of us must share his story and demand his quick and safe return. An assault on the due process rights of anyone is a threat to the due process rights of everyone."

The unanimous ruling from the court said that Garcia must be brought back to the U.S., but the Trump administration has claimed that his return is out of its power, while the El Salvadoran president also rejected the idea when questioned by reporters.

Politico reported Tuesday that Booker was organizing a delegation of Democrats to go to El Salvador to try to help Garcia.

Wang responded to the report in a post on social media Tuesday.

"I was an NJ resident, Sen. @CoryBooker’s constituent, when I was jailed in Iran as an American hostage," he wrote. "Sen. Booker never advocated for my release & refused to speak to my wife. Sen. Booker is a hypocrite."

When he was confronted with some of the efforts Booker did undertake on his behalf, Wang admitted his error but persisted in his opinion that Booker did not do enough to free him.

"As Sen. Booker’s constituent, I expected him to do more," he responded. "There are other members in Congress across the aisle, who weren’t my reps and did more, like [Rep.] Chris Smith (D-N.J.) & [Rep. Pramila] Jayapal (D-Wash.)."

"Sen. Booker does not appear to be consistent in advocating for unjustly detained Americans abroad, he seems to take a special interest in this specific case because President Trump deported the person in question," Wang added.

Critics of the Trump administration argue that the evidence of Garcia's gang membership was dubious because the man had never been criminally charged after entering the U.S. The claim that he was a gang member was made by a confidential informant and also on the basis that Garcia was wearing a Chicago Bulls hoodie and hat.

Attorneys for the Trump administration also admitted in court that he was deported based on a "clerical error."

Wang, a Chinese-American graduate student at Princeton University, had been convicted of spying by the Iranian government without evidence and sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2017. The Trump administration was able to secure his release in 2019 as part of a prisoner swap.

Princeton had defended Wang's actions and said he was innocent of the charges issued by the hostile Iranian government.

"He was not involved in any political activities or social activism," the university said in a statement, "he was simply a scholar trying to gain access to materials he needed for his dissertation."

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BBC apologizes after airing interview with imposter claiming to be Sen. Cory Booker



The BBC has been left red-faced after airing a radio interview with a yet-unidentified prankster posing as U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), in what the outlet believes was "a deliberate hoax."

What are the details?

The interview ran during Friday's Newshour program on the British outlet, leaving some listeners perplexed.

Audience members took to social media to cry foul, with one person alerting the senator directly, writing, "@CoryBooker did you do an interview today with the BBC discussing the Khashoggi killing? Someone sounding nothing like you and without your speech pattern was claiming to be you today."

Another listener wrote, "I'm not sure who the BBC World Service just interviewed on Newshour about US relations with Saudi Arabia, but it definitely wasn't Senator Cory Booker..."

However, some folks besides the BBC were apparently fooled, too, with one person tweeting to Booker, "@CoryBooker great interview on the BBC World Service talking about peoples right to information and the Khashoggi murder by Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia."

On Monday, the BBC issued a correction and an apology, admitting the outlet had been duped "in what appears to be a deliberate hoax."

The broadcasting network added, "We have apologized to Senator Booker and are looking into what went wrong to make sure it doesn't happen again."

After issuing the statement, social media and reporters alike were left scrambling to find the audio, which has not yet been unearthed. The New York Daily News reported that "the BBC said the interview was pulled from its website minutes after it was aired."

Neither the BBC nor Booker have immediately responded to requests for comment on the incident.

Anything else?

The Daily Mail noted that "it is usually difficult for people to trick their way onto live television and radio programs because they are often vetted by more than one producer," yet, "the incidents do happen from time to time."

The Hill pointed to such a situation in December when an animal rights activist landed a televised interview with Fox Business' Mara Bartiromo, where he pretended to be the CEO of Smithfield Foods.

However, Bartiromo caught on to what had happened before the show was over, telling her viewers she had "an important correction to make," confessing: "It appears we have been punk'd."

The animal rights activist later told The Wrap he did not feel guilty about carrying out the ruse, which he pulled off using "fake email addresses and fake phone numbers and lots of pitches."

Booker suggests Amy Coney Barrett will 'delegitimize' SCOTUS if she doesn't recuse herself from election-related cases



Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) suggested Sunday that Amy Coney Barrett will "delegitimize" the Supreme Court if she does not preemptively recuse herself from cases related to the 2020 election.

What's the background?

After Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) explained why confirming a new Supreme Court justice prior to the election is crucial.

"Democrats and Joe Biden have made clear, they intend to challenge this election, they intend to fight the legitimacy of the election," Cruz said. "We cannot have Election Day come and go with a 4-4 court."

"A 4-4 court that is equally divided cannot decide anything. And I think we risk a constitutional crisis if we do not have a nine justice Supreme Court, particularly when there's such a risk of a contested litigation and a contested election," the Texas senator explained.

What did Booker say?

Despite Cruz's warning, Booker suggested on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Barrett, if confirmed prior to Election Day, should not have a say in any election-related case.

"I'm going to make it very clear. One of the things I want to ask her is will she recuse herself, in terms of any election issues that come before us, because if she does not recuse herself, I fear that the court will be further delegitimized."

Booker then turned to bash President Donald Trump.

"In other words, President Trump has said, 'I will not accept the result of the election unless I win. I'm going to push it to the Supreme Court, and oh, by the way, during the election I'm going to put somebody on the court, as well.' So I hope to have a conversation with her, and I'm blessed to be on the [Senate] Judiciary Committee, and I'll have that, as well. And hopefully, I'll have a good, informed dialogue back and forth," Booker said.

Booker went on to claim the Republican Party, by supporting Barrett's nomination, is "undermining their legitimacy, the legitimacy of the Supreme Court."

WATCH: Democratic Senator @CoryBooker says he intends to have a "good, informed dialogue" with Amy Coney Barrett.… https://t.co/0avmJVSMjU
— Meet the Press (@Meet the Press)1601217144.0

Democrats are working overtime to delegitimize Barrett's nomination. They're claiming her nomination is part of a power-grab by the president, and that she would take health care away from Americans.

However, there remain some honest Democrats who admit that, despite disagreeing with Barrett's judicial philosophy or the circumstances of her nomination, she remains "highly qualified" for the job.

"I want to be extremely clear. Regardless of what you or I may think of the circumstances of this nomination, Barrett is highly qualified to serve on the Supreme Court," Harvard Law School's Noah Feldman wrote in an essay. "And when she is confirmed, I am going to accept it as the consequence of the constitutional rules we have and the choices we collectively and individually have made. And I'm going to be confident that Barrett is going to be a good justice, maybe even a great one — even if I disagree with her all the way."