Lawmaker Blasted for Performing Nazi Salute in European Parliament

A Polish member of the European Parliament sparked outrage this week when he performed a Nazi salute and uttered an altered version of a Nazi slogan while trying to make his case against a plan for single tickets for public transportation across European Union borders.

The lawmaker, Janusz Korwin-Mikke, used the gesture as he was arguing in favor of more diversity in European laws. The salute comes 48 seconds into the video:

Speaking in English, the prominent Euroskeptic criticized the EU parliament for stifling diversity by “voting for the unification of everything.”

As he raised his hand, he said, "Ein Reich, ein Volk, ein Ticket," a play on the Nazi mantra, "Ein Volk, ein Reich, ein Fuehrer," meaning “One People, one Empire, one Leader.”

Poland’s foreign minister Thursday apologized for the lawmaker’s behavior.

The Associated Press reported that Foreign Minister Grzegorz Schetyna apologized for Korwin-Mikke's "performance," saying, "we all are ashamed of such behavior."

The Polish website Inside Poland also criticized the lawmaker: “It could be argued that this is the kind of behavior one might expect from a hooligan. … Korwin-Mikke’s behavior shows him to be a man without a shred of dignity or respect for his country, and a politician whose thirst for publicity far outweighs any sense of patriotism that he claims to feel for Poland.”