A MAGA ‘Civil War’ on X between Musk and the far right over H-1B visas
The
online rift over the H-1B skilled-worker visa program signifies a
potential wedge between Trump’s core base and his new Silicon Valley
supporters.
Far-right
activists clashed online with billionaire Elon Musk and other
supporters of President-elect Donald Trump over the need for a
skilled-worker immigration program that has long been a lifeblood for
Silicon Valley — signifying a potential rift between Trump’s core
nationalist base and technology executives who have come to support him.
The
fight that spilled into public view over the holiday week could preview
a wedge within Trump’s coalition over how to execute immigration
policy, an issue that animated Trump’s White House campaign.
The
controversy spread across X after far-right activist Laura Loomer on
Monday criticized Trump’s choice to name Sriram Krishnan, a technology
entrepreneur and investor who was born in India, as his senior policy
adviser on artificial intelligence. She pointed to Krishnan’s previous
support for removing some caps on H-1B visas, a program allowing
foreigners with technical skills to work in the United States. The
policy is “in direct opposition” to Trump’s agenda, Loomer wrote.
The
critique ran headlong into tension with some of Trump’s closest
advisers, notably Tesla and SpaceX CEO Musk; David Sacks who will be the
president-elect’s AI and crypto czar; and Vivek Ramaswamy, who will
co-lead a commission to cut government spending. “‘Normalcy’ doesn’t cut
it in a hyper-competitive global market for technical talent,”
Ramaswamy said. “And if we pretend like it does, we’ll have our a--es
handed to us by China.”
The
online fight sparked a slew of racist posts from Loomer falsely
describing Indians as “third world invaders" with low IQs, while saying
it is fueling a “civil war” between Trump’s far-right base and the “tech
bros” that have come to support his upcoming administration. ...