Right-wing British priest Calvin Robinson was banned from the priesthood after he copied the Nazi-like salute that Elon Musk delivered during a speech as part of Republican President Donald Trump's inauguration festivities.
Robinson, a former GB News host, made an appearance at the National Pro-Life summit in Washington DC on Friday.
“My heart goes out to all of you," he said and ended his address by pounding his chest with his right hand and extending it out in front of him very much like the gesture used as a greeting in Nazi Germany.
Here is a clip.
Robinson's gesture, followed by a smirk, was a clear homage to Musk's stiff-armed salute he demonstrated twice during his speech at Capital One Arena for Trump's inaugural parade heralding his second term in the White House.
While accusations that the tech billionaire did the Nazi salute proliferated online, many on the right defended Musk, who later addressed the controversy on his platform X (formerly Twitter).
He wrote, "Frankly, they need better dirty tricks. The 'everyone is Hitler' attack is sooo tired."
After Robinson's arm salute drew backlash, the right-wing commentator had his priest license swiftly revoked by the Anglican Catholic Church (ACC).
On January 29, the ACC issued the following statement, which read in part:
“While we cannot say what was in Mr. Robinson’s heart when he did this, his action appears to have been an attempt to curry favour with certain elements of the American political right by provoking its opposition."
The statement continued:
"Mr. Robinson had been warned that online trolling and other such actions (whether in service of the left or right) are incompatible with a priestly vocation and was told to desist."
"Clearly, he has not, and as such, his license in this Church has been revoked. He is no longer serving as a priest in the ACC."
The ACC letter also stressed that the "Holocaust was an episode of unspeakable horror, enacted by a regime of evil men" and added:
"We condemn Nazi ideology and anti-Semitism in all its forms."
"And we believe that those who mimic the Nazi salute, even as a joke or an attempt to troll their opponents, trivialize the horror of the Holocaust and diminish the sacrifice of those who fought against its perpetrators."
Robinson later shot down accusations he was a Nazi.
He wrote on X:
"Today I received hundreds of nasty calls, texts, voicemails and emails today from very bitter, angry, vile leftists."
"They are often the very thing they accuse you of. I am not a Nazi."
"But I forgive you of your ignorance. My heart goes out to you!"
People had no tolerance for Robinson's demonstration.
Social media users praised the ACC for their immediate handling of the situation.
On Monday, CNN's Republican pundit Scott Jennings downplayed Musk's Nazi salute during News Night with Abby Phillip, prompting Washington Post columnist Catherine Rampell to challenge him to repeat the gesture if he thought it wasn't offensive.
Jennings deflected by rambling about how it was "the biggest conspiracy theory" and that allegations of Musk's "salute trutherism" were "outrageous."
Meanwhile, Musk, who hasn't exactly denied giving a Nazi salute but made jokes about it on X, made a surprise videolink appearance at a campaign event for AfD, a far-right Alternative for Germany group that the country's national security services deemed a suspected extremist organization.
The Tesla CEO and close Trump ally told a crowd of around 4,500 gatherers that "children should not be guilty of the sins of their parents, let alone their great-grandparents," about Nazi Germany and the Holocaust.
