USA Bannon ends speech with Hitler salute-like gesture
The ultra-right publicist Steve Bannon ended his speech at the right-wing conservative CPAC conference with an arm gesture reminiscent of a Hitler salute. "Fight! Fight! Fight!", Bannon shouted at the end of his speech in Washington, making the appropriate gesture. It is not the first time that a person close to US President Donald Trump has been criticized for this reason.
21.02.2025, 15:51
SDA
Bannon's speech was characterized by martial rhetoric. He stylized the Republican as a central figure in contemporary history and as an "instrument of divine providence", called on his audience to fight for Trump, the republic and the country, and warned of difficult times ahead.
He also said: "We want Trump 2028". He was apparently alluding to the next US presidential election - although Trump is not allowed to be re-elected to office after two terms according to the US constitution. The Republican has repeatedly flirted with the idea of circumventing this restriction.
Bannon's speech culminated in a call for resistance against political opponents. "This one can't be defeated," Bannon declared, heating up with the words "Fight! Fight! Fight!" to fire up the audience. The slogan has become established among his supporters since the assassination attempt on Trump during the election campaign and is chanted at many events.
Memories of the Musk controversy
Finally, Bannon raised his right arm in the air - only briefly, but in a way that was reminiscent of a controversy surrounding Trump's swearing-in. There, tech billionaire Elon Musk had caused criticism with a similar gesture. Musk then made fun of the accusations on X - including with puns that alluded to influential National Socialists and Adolf Hitler's followers.
Bannon repeatedly uses far-right narratives in his statements and is one of the most influential ideologues in the Trump movement. In 2016, he played a central role in the Republican's election victory. Trump made him chief strategist in the White House at the time, but Bannon only stayed there for a few months. The two later fell out, but Bannon ultimately maintained his loyalty to the now re-elected US President.
Bannon served a four-month prison sentence last year for ignoring a subpoena from the committee investigating the storming of the Capitol on January 6, 2021 and refusing to hand over documents. He himself describes the allegations as politically motivated.
