US President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday sided with key supporter and technology chief Elon Musk in a public dispute over the use of visas for foreign technology workers, saying he fully supports H-1B visas opposed by some of his supporters.
Trump’s comments followed a series of social media messages from Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, who vowed on Friday to go “to war” to protect the visa program for foreign tech workers.
Trump, who reduced the use of visas during his first term as president, told the New York Post on Saturday that he likes the visa program.
“I have a lot of H-1B visas in my places. I’ve been a believer in H-1B. I’ve used it many times. It’s a great program,” he was quoted as saying.
Musk, an American citizen born in South Africa, has an H-1B visa, and his electric car company Tesla has received 724 visas this year. H-1B visas are usually issued for a period of three years, although holders can extend them or apply for permanent residency.
US President-elect Donald Trump continues to assemble his team with staunch MAGA supporters, including Mike Waltz, Florida congressman and outspoken critic Justin Trudeau, Fox News host Pete Hegseth, and businessmen Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Former Trump rival Marco Rubio is expected to be nominated for Secretary of State.
The controversy began earlier this week with activists criticizing Trump for choosing Sriram Krishnan, an Indian-American financier, to be an adviser on artificial intelligence, saying he would influence the Trump administration’s policies.
Musk’s “battle” comments were directed at Trump supporters and immigrant laborers, who have continued to push for the H-1B visa program to be repealed amid a heated debate over immigration and the place of skilled immigrants and foreign workers brought into the country on work visas. .
On Friday, Steve Bannon, Trump’s longtime confidant, criticized the “big tech oligarchs” for supporting the H-1B program and positioned immigrants as a threat to Western civilization.
In response, Musk and other tech billionaires draw a line between what they see as legal immigration and illegal immigration.
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Trump has promised to deport all illegal immigrants in the US, impose tariffs to help create jobs for American citizens and severely restrict immigration.
The visa issue highlights how tech leaders like Musk — who has played a key role in the president’s transition, advising on key staff and policy areas — are now looking to his base.
The U.S. tech industry relies on the government’s H-1B visa program to hire skilled foreign workers to help run its companies, a labor pool that critics say depresses the wages of U.S. citizens.
Musk spent more than a quarter of a billion dollars helping Trump win the presidency in November. You’ve written regularly this week about the lack of homegrown talent to fill all the positions needed within American tech companies.
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