WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions Donald Trump Advocates on immigration and the tech industry have brought the internal divisions in his political movement out into the open, showcasing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House.
The rift exposed tensions between the newest wing of the Trump movement – wealthy members of the tech world including a billionaire. Elon Musk And fellow businessman Vivek Ramaswamy And their call for more highly-skilled workers in their industries — and people in Trump’s Make America Great Again base who have championed hard-line immigration policies.
The debate started this week when Laura Lemirea right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s choice of Sriram Krishnan As an AI policy advisor in his next administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants to the United States
Loomer declared that the position was “not an America First policy” and said Tech executives who allied with Trump They were doing it to enrich themselves.
There was a lot of discussion on the social network X, which Musk owns.
Loomer’s comments sparked a back-and-forth debate with the venture capitalist and former philanthropist PayPal CEO David Sachsappointed by Trump to be the “AI and Cryptocurrency Czar in the White House.” Musk and Ramaswamy, Who was tasked by Trump with finding ways to reduce the federal governmentHe defended the need for the technology industry to bring in foreign workers.
It has evolved into a larger debate with more figures from the hard right discussing the need to hire American workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, freedom of expression on the Internet, and the new influence that tech figures have in Trump world. What his political movement represents.
Trump has not yet thought about this rift. His presidential transition team did not respond to questions about positions related to high-skilled worker visas or discussion among his supporters online. Instead, his team instead sent a link to a post on X by a long-time, hard-line immigration consultant Stephen Miller It was a transcript of a speech Trump gave 2020 at Mount Rushmore It paid tribute to figures and moments from American history.
Musk is the richest man in the world She became remarkably close to the president-electHe was a central figure in the debate, not only because of his standing in the Trump movement but his stance on hiring foreign workers in the tech industry.
Tech companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, which are used by software engineers and other workers in the tech industry, are essential for hard-to-fill jobs. But critics say it undermines American citizens who can fill those jobs. Some on the right have called for canceling the program, not expanding it.
Born in South Africa, Musk once held an H-1B visa and has championed the industry’s need to bring in foreign workers.
“There is a constant shortage of excellent engineering talent,” he said in a post. “It’s the primary limiting factor in Silicon Valley.”
Trump’s positions over the years have reflected the division in his movement.
His tough immigration policies, including his pledge to mass deport, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He focused on immigrants who come to the United States illegally, but he also did so He called for restrictions on legal immigrationincluding family visas.
When Trump was a presidential candidate in 2016, he called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” to American workers. After becoming president, Trump issued the slogan in 2017, “Buy American, hire American.” Executive orderwhich directed Cabinet members to propose changes to ensure H-1B visas are awarded to the highest-paid or most skilled applicants to protect American workers.
However, Trump’s companies have hired foreign workers, including… Waiters and chefs at his Mar-a-Lago clubHis social media company is behind the Truth Social app The H-1B program was used For highly skilled workers.
During his 2024 presidential campaign, where he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally were “poisoning the blood of our country” and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in US history.
But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message on immigration in general, Trump said he told the podcast This year he wants to grant automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from American colleges.
“I think you should automatically, as part of your degree, get a green card to be able to stay in this country,” he said on “All-In” with people from the venture capital and technology worlds.
The comments came on the cusp of Trump’s emerging alliance with figures in the tech industry, but he has not made the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detailed any plans to pursue such changes.
