These days, raising your arm is dangerous territory. In a demonstration of what not to do, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker made an awkward right-arm gesture as he left the stage after speaking at the California Democratic Convention on Saturday.
In a clip that lit up social media, Booker places his hand over his heart, then throws an open palm to the crowd with his arm straight.
Moments ago, Cory Booker salutes 4,000 CA Democrat Party delegates. pic.twitter.com/5il76AeGhX
— Richie Greenberg (@greenbergnation) May 31, 2025
The MAGA bandwagon was quick to jump on the clip, with commentators on X branding New Jersey’s first Black Senator a “straight up Nazi” and “literally Hitler.”
“Cory Booker sending his heart out to everyone,” one user wrote, followed by facepalm and crying laughing emojis. It’s the same line of defense used by Elon Musk, who drew international condemnation for a similar gesture performed at Trump’s inauguration in January.
What’s the difference? pic.twitter.com/wHi4BIbz90
— Wheremehousekey (@wheremehousekey) May 31, 2025
Musk himself shared the clip of Booker to his 220 million followers on X, commenting with a raised eyebrow emoji.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 1, 2025
The world’s richest man was still talking about his “unfair” treatment for the move only a few weeks ago, telling CNBC: “How many legacy media publications, talk shows, whatever, try to claim that I was a Nazi because of some random hand gesture at a rally where all I said was that my heart goes out to you.”
Booker, a self-described “progressive,” is famous for his recent record-breaking 25-hour filibuster, which he undertook to steal the title from Republican Senator Strom Thurmond, who had tried to block the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1957 with a speech that lasted 24 hours and 18 minutes.
In Booker’s marathon session, he spoke of a Trump-caused national “crisis” and criticized Musk’s “bullying” political tactics.
Booker’s gesture, with arm moving forward and fingers splayed, differs slightly from Musk’s—whose fingers were tight and arm moved upwards and diagonally—but clearly not enough to avoid controversy.
On the other hand, allegations over Musk’s fascist beliefs do not stem entirely from a single gesture. The billionaire has long supported far-right parties across the globe, meeting, praising, and amplifying conservatives in at least 18 countries, NBC reports. He even appeared via video at an AfD rally in Germany, telling voters to be “proud” of their culture, to not let it be “diluted” by multiculturalism, and that they should “move beyond” past guilt.
Whatever Booker intended by the gesture, MAGA are not letting this one go and are demanding similar ink be spilt comparing the senator to Hitler as was with Musk.
In the future, it would probably be better if all public figures just avoided trying to express their hearts going out to others through physical, single-armed gestures—if only to avoid sparking exhausting online feuds such as these.
The Daily Beast has reached out to Booker’s office for comment.
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