I think people who focus too much on "whether he really meant it or really made the salute" etc, are missing the forrest for the trees. He's a guy who supports

I think people who focus too much on "whether he really meant it or really made the salute" etc, are missing the forrest for the trees. He's a guy who supports the AFD, who has said "German people are too focused on the past and should get rid of national guilt" or something along these lines. He definitely spends a lot of time online regurgitating 4chan like memes (which fine, I do that too, but I'm not a world leader) and acts and talks like a person who is obsessed with white demographics in Western societies. He has a reputation of someone who would plausibly do that as a playful nod towards his terminally online fanbase. That's the issue. His reputation makes it believable. Whether he really meant to or not has little to do with that fact. Ultimately one's reputation is everything in democratic politics