Cracks appear in the Maga world over foreign work visas
High-profile supporters of President-elect Donald Trump have clashed online over a visa program aimed at bringing skilled tech workers to the US – a foreshadowing of possible tensions within the White House Trump’s upcoming.
In a post on Thursday X, Vivek Ramaswamy, Trump’s nominee to cut government spending, defends the H-1B visa system and criticizes American parenting practices.
“Our American culture worships mediocrity over excellence,” Ramawamy wrote in a lengthy post, arguing that foreign labor improves the competitiveness of the American economy.
But the post quickly drew backlash from Trump supporters who strongly oppose any form of immigration.
The controversy played out online over the holidays, as mainstream Republicans and far-right influencers joined in the criticism.
Ramaswamy’s position on skilled worker visas is supported by Elon Musk, a tech billionaire chosen to co-direct Trump’s “Department of Government Efficiency” proposal.
Taking aim at American culture, Ramaswamy writes: “A culture that celebrates the prom queen over the math Olympiad champion, or the athlete who surpasses valedictorian.” [the top student in a class]will not produce the best engineers.”
But Nikki Haley, Trump’s former ambassador to the United Nations and a former Republican presidential candidate, argued against the tech bosses.
“There is nothing wrong with American workers or American culture,” she wrote in response to X. “All you have to do is look at the border and see how many people want what we have. We should invest and prioritize Americans, not foreign workers.”
Haley, who like Ramaswamy was born to Indian immigrants, has been involved in protesting the visa program using far-right accounts online.
Laura Loomer, an anti-Muslim activist who frequently spreads conspiracy theories but is also known for her steadfast support for Trump, has led the charge online with posts viewed millions of times .
Earlier in the week, Loomer criticized Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan, a businessman of Indian origin, as the White House’s senior adviser on artificial intelligence. Loomer wrote that Krishnan is a “career leftist” who “directly opposes Trump’s America First agenda.”
Encouraged by far-right X accounts, she also called Indian immigrants “invaders” and directed racist actions against Krishnan.
Loomer then accused Musk, who owns X, of “censorship” for allegedly limiting responses to her posts online and removing her from the paid program.
Echoing Trump’s criticism of boss X’s influence, she wrote: “‘President Musk’ is starting to look real…Freedom of speech is an illusion.”
Meanwhile, Musk protect the H-1B visa program like attracting “~0.1%” of top technical talent”.
“Thinking of America as a professional sports team that has won for a long time and wants to continue to win is the right way to build morale,” he wrote on Twitter.
But online critics posted screenshots of job postings at his companies filled with H1-B visa holders, showing salaries of $200,000 or less, and argued that the This recruitment is not a source of elite talent but a way to keep US wages lower. – born worker.
The number of H-1B visas issued is limited to 65,000 per year plus an additional 20,000 for those with master’s degrees from U.S. institutions.
Recently Boundless researchan immigration consulting firm, points out that approximately 73% of H-1B visas are issued to Indian nationals, with 12% issued to Chinese nationals.
Trump promised that mass deportations of undocumented immigrants would begin as soon as he took office. He was a critic of the H-1B program and tightened eligibility for that visa during his first term.
His vice president, JD Vance, also campaigned against the program but has close ties to the tech world. In his previous career as a venture capitalist, Vance funded startups that hired workers on H-1B visas.
In recent days, the president-elect has also denied that he was unduly influenced by Musk and other billionaires who supported his campaign.
On Sunday, Trump told a conservative conference in Arizona that he was not under Musk’s direction.
“You know, they’re taking a new step forward,” he told the crowd at AmericaFest, hosted by Turning Point USA. “All different hoaxes. The latest is that President Trump gave up the presidency to Elon Musk.”
“No, no, that’s not happening,” he said. “He will not become president.”
